


Unmasked

by Alyx17



Category: Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-29
Updated: 2017-11-03
Packaged: 2018-12-08 11:59:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 23,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11646111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alyx17/pseuds/Alyx17
Summary: After Peter refuses a spot with the Avengers, everyone thinks he can go back to being friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.Secretary Ross has other ideas.





	1. Chapter 1

Tony stifled a groan when Secretary Ross’s number appeared on his caller ID. He was in the lab tinkering with one of the gloves of his suit, trying to bring the lag time in firing lasers down.

 

“Shall I send him to voicemail, boss?”

 

Tony smirked. He’d dodged Ross’s calls so consistently that F.R.I.D.A.Y. now defaulted to sending him to voicemail. He sighed. “Better not… this is the fifth time this week. Patch him through.”

 

“Right away, boss.”

 

“Stark. Where have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you.”

 

“I’ve uh—been very busy…”

 

“So I’ve heard. Reports have reached my desk that you planned to initiate a new member of the Avengers at a press conference last Wednesday.”

 

Tony sighed, remembering Peter’s refusal. It still stung a little. “Yeah. It didn’t work out, actually.”

 

“Would this be Spider-Man? The same Spider-Man who tried to help bring in Rogers and Barnes in Berlin?”

 

“The very same.”

 

“The department of defense has been talking, Tony. Now that you’ve brought this person into official government business… we feel that we can no longer ignore his vigilantism in New York. Whether or not he wants to call himself an ‘Avenger’ is a matter of little interest to us. He’s on our radar now, and he needs to sign the accords.”

 

Tony froze. He hadn’t expected this. “He’s not an Avenger,” Tony snarled. “The accords are for the Avengers. This was a one-time deal, Ross. He helped us out _once._ He was on our side, remember?”

 

“Tony, it’s not about our side or their side. It’s about making sure that physically enhanced individuals are held accountable for their actions. This isn’t a punishment, it’s the law.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. Ross was so damn self-righteous. “Look, he’s not signing the accords, ok?”

 

“I’m afraid he won’t be given a choice. He has two weeks to sign the accords or we will send a team to bring him in.”

 

Rage was thundering through Tony now. He’d rapidly lost control of this situation. “Wait—“

 

Ross ended the call.  

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Tony puzzles over how to protect Peter from Ross, Peter does what he does best.

Peter was anxious to start his evening patrol of the city. Ever since May had discovered that he was Spider-Man, it was harder and harder to get out of the apartment un-questioned.

 

“Where are you patrolling tonight?”

 

“Just around Queens, Aunt May.”

 

“Nothing too dangerous, okay?”

 

“Yes, Aunt May.”

 

May looked at him exasperatedly. “Do you mean that?”

 

Peter grinned. “Maybe,” he teased.

 

May rolled her eyes, returning to her cooking. “Remember, I’m watching—“

 

“I know, Aunt May.” Peter cringed, remembering that May was indeed tracking him with Find My Friends. He was a superhero, being tracked by his aunt with an iPhone application. It was mildly humiliating, but Peter knew that he should consider himself lucky. It was one of the many things that he and May had agreed upon following her discovery of his identity. Peter cringed at the memory of that night.

 

“What the fuck?!” May shouted, red in the face.

 

Peter froze, feeling as though he’d been doused in ice water. He turned slowly to face his aunt, breaking out in a thin sheen of sweat. “May…”

 

Peter had never seen May so angry. She was positively apoplectic. For what felt like an eternity to Peter, she simply stood there and gaped at her nephew. When she finally spoke, her voice was low and dangerous. “How could you do this to me?”

 

Peter flinched. It would have been better if she’d shouted. “May… I…”

 

“No, Peter. Don’t say a damn word right now. Get changed out of that—that— _thing_ and when you’re decent you can come into this living room and tell me how on Earth you could _dare_.” May stalked away from him, slamming the door behind her.

 

Peter undressed with trembling fingers, throwing on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. _How could I be so stupid?_ He could think of any number of criminals or supervillains that he would rather take on right now than face his aunt May. She was going to _murder_ him.

 

Peter gingerly opened the door to his room, peering out into the living room where his aunt sat rigidly on the sofa. She turned to face him, and Peter was alarmed to see that any trace of anger had been quite extinguished, replaced by tears. This was worse. Much worse.

 

He sat on the sofa beside her, giving her space, waiting for her to say something. The silence was excruciating. Finally, May whispered “After Ben, Peter?”

 

The words went through Peter like a knife as he felt his own eyes burn with tears. He swallowed hard, looking for the right thing to say. “Because of Ben,” he answered.

 

May’s eyebrows shot up, and then Peter was talking. It was as if he’d opened some flood gate deep in his chest, and he couldn’t stop the words from coming. He was telling May everything, about the spider that had bitten him, about the robber he’d let go, about the night Ben died. “H-he’s dead because of me,” Peter sobbed. “May… I’m so sorry. I—I couldn’t let that happen to anyone else—if it happened to someone else, it would be because of me… j-just like Uncle Ben was…”

 

May had gone ghostly white when Peter talked about the night of Ben’s murder. Peter didn’t blame her—he’d just admitted to the unspeakable. He was shaking uncontrollably. “I-I know you probably don’t want me here… I can stay with N-Ned tonight…”

 

“Oh, honey…” May wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close to her. Peter sobbed brokenly on her shoulder. “What happened to Ben was not your fault, okay? God, sweetie, what a burden for you to be carrying…”

 

Peter cried harder. May ran her hand through his hair, soothing him. “There’s not a thing in this world that would make me not love you. Stay at Ned’s… that’s the craziest thing I’ve heard all night, including the fact that my nephew is Spider-Man.”

 

Peter gave a watery chuckle.

 

“Look honey, we’re going to figure this out, okay?”

 

After that, things passed in a blur. Aunt May called Tony and shouted herself hoarse, then asked every question she could think of about the safety features of Peter’s suit. Peter and May worked out a system of communication including Find My Friends. May reluctantly agreed that Spider-Man was too big a part of Peter to ask him to give up and Peter agreed to be as safe as possible while doing it.

 

Peter was snapped out of his recollections by May. “No leaving Queens without telling me, okay?”

 

“Yes, May.”

 

Finally, Peter was free. He exuberantly swung from building to building, looking for anything suspicious. “Karen, anything in Queens on the police scanner?”

 

“Nothing, Peter.”

 

“Ok, let me know if that changes!”

 

Over the course of four hours, Peter thwarted someone trying to hot-wire a car, foiled a mugging and prevented a kid from spray painting curse words on the side of an apartment complex.

 

He was about to return home for the night when Karen’s voice sounded. “The police received a phone call from a young woman ten blocks north of here reporting that she’s being followed by two men. Estimated time of arrival for an officer is fifteen minutes.”

 

“Fifteen minutes?!” Peter frowned. That was far too long. “Pull up her location for me, Karen!”

 

It took Peter about a minute of furious web swinging to spot the young woman in question with Karen’s advanced audio and visual. She looked to be in her early 20s with wildly curly brown hair and combat boots. Her eyes were panicked, and Peter saw that there were indeed two young men following her.

 

“Slow down, baby! Where you going?” one of them called out.

 

The girl did not reply but picked up her pace, head down.

 

“Yeah, we just want to get to know you better!” the other one jeered.

 

With that remark, the woman started to run. Peter cursed under his breath, moving faster but not fast enough. The first man caught up, grabbing her by the arm. He and his friend guffawed as she struggled to break free. In one deft motion, the man shoved the woman into the wall of the nearest building, which she hit with a sickening thud, sinking to the ground at their feet.

 

“P-please—“ she whimpered.

 

Finally, Peter was there. His head was pounding with fury. Webbing one of the men to the wall, he approached the one who had thrown the woman down and punched him in the gut. The man doubled over, wheezing, as Peter swept his legs out from under him. He landed on his back, the wind knocked out of him. He attempted to crawl away but Peter kicked him hard in the side. He cried out in pain, putting his hands up to defend himself as Peter drew back for another punch—and then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the woman he’d come to protect was watching him in terror. With effort, he controlled himself, webbing up the second man next to his friend. Peter was breathing hard. _I could have killed him… I can’t afford to lose control like that._ The woman was still staring at him. Peter approached her cautiously, sickened to see the bruise that was already blooming on her face where she’d made contact with the wall.

 

“Are you alright?”

 

Peter held out a hand to help the woman to her feet and was alarmed when she swayed dramatically.

 

“Karen?”

 

“Moderate concussion, Peter. Nearest hospital is .3 miles away.”

 

“Police?”

 

“Still seven minutes away.”

 

Peter bit his lip, thinking. Finally, he turned to the woman. “Hey, look at me. I’m going to get you some help, okay?”

 

The woman didn’t respond. She seemed on the verge of passing out. Peter touched her face. “Hey, hey! Don’t pass out on me, ok? You need to stay awake. Keep talking to me. What’s your name?”

 

“M-Meggie.”

 

“Okay, Meggie. Hold tight to me, okay?”  


As gently as he could manage, Peter swung her to the hospital, informing the alarmed ER staff of what had happened. After he was convinced that Meggie was in good hands, he set off for home feeling physically and emotionally drained.

 

That night as he collapsed into bed feeling exhausted, he felt perfectly content with his role as a neighborhood Spider-Man. Protecting people like Meggie was why he started doing this in the first place. In the immediate aftermath of turning down the Avengers, Peter wondered if he’d made the right decision. He knew that what the Avengers did was important—they protected the _whole world_ from destruction. But Peter knew that at least for now where he was meant to be was closer to the ground—protecting the people of New York City. He still had so much to learn (he reflected with shame on how he’d gotten carried away with Meggie’s attacker) before he was ready to be a full-fledged Avenger. But he knew that one day he would get there. Contentedly, Peter drifted off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In desperation, Tony turns to Steve for help with Peter's situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading and for your lovely comments! :D Enjoy chapter 3.

_I know I hurt you Tony. I guess I thought by not telling you about your parents I was sparing you. I can see now that I was really sparing myself, and I’m sorry. Hopefully one day you can understand._

The agony of discovering that Steve had known about his parents’ murder still plagued Tony. He had nightmares of the footage he’d watched in Siberia, unable to purge it from his mind. Steve’s nondisclosure was an ultimate betrayal, one that Tony never imagined he could be capable of.

 

Tony read the letter that Steve sent before breaking Wanda, Sam, Scott, and Clint out of the raft so often that he had it memorized by heart, yet he’d never made a move to call the one number pre-programmed into the phone it had come with.

 

_So no matter what, I promise you, if you need us, if you need me, I’ll be there._

 

Tony never agreed with the raft. He never agreed to the inhumane way that his friends were treated. He signed the accords because he believed it was the right thing to do, because he was haunted by the civilian deaths and destruction that the Avengers left behind. It had seemed such a simple thing, then. A no-brainer. The velocity with which the situation got away from him was dizzying. Everything he’d done he’d done to try to keep his family, the Avengers, together. When he found out about that psychiatrist, he’d rushed to Steve’s side in Siberia, accords be damned.

 

He didn’t know if he could ever find it in him to forgive Steve for not telling him about his parents. The rift between them seemed a dark and fathomless fissure. Was there any coming back from that?

 

Tony knew that whatever had happened between Steve and him, he’d meant what he’d said in that letter. This was bigger than him and his personal grievances. The time had come to use the phone. Tony poured himself a generous measure of Scotch, fished the phone out of his desk, and called the pre-set number. He hated himself for how hard his heart was hammering and took a large gulp of the Scotch.

 

Each ring was torment. Tony both wanted and didn’t want Steve to pick up. He drummed his fingers on the desk. Finally, on the third ring, the phone was answered.

 

It wasn’t Steve.

 

“Hello? Damn. I never thought you’d actually use this number…”

 

“Sam?”

 

“Speaking. Hold on, Cap will want to talk to you. He makes sure someone is monitoring this phone at all times…”

Tony felt a pang at those words, draining the rest of his Scotch in one gulp and pouring himself still more. There was some commotion on the other line, and then…

 

“Tony?”

 

Tony opened his mouth and then closed it abruptly. _Rogers._

 

“Tony, is that you?”

 

“Y-yeah. It’s me.”

 

“It’s… good to hear from you. Is everything alright?”

 

“Um… not exactly…I—I wouldn’t be calling if… I’m out of my fucking element here.”

 

Cap’s concern was nearly palpable through the line. “What’s going on? What do you need?”

 

“I—it’s about the kid.”

 

“You’ll need to be more specific.”

 

“The kid from Berlin,” Tony winced. “Spider-Man.”

 

“The one from Queens? What about him?”

 

Tony summoned what courage he could muster. “Ross… wants him to sign the accords.”

 

There was a long pause. “Why is that a problem? You still support the accords, don’t you?”

 

“The accords are for Avengers. The kid’s not an Avenger.”  


“Yeah, Tony, but did you honestly expect Ross to let him skip along on his merry way once this was over?”

 

_Yes, damn me, I actually did._ Steve seemed to guess as much from Tony’s silence. He sighed heavily. “Look, Tony, you chose this side. Avenger or not, you brought him into this. If you still support the accords, what’s the issue?”

 

“He’s a _kid._ A kid who, by the way, just turned me down when I offered him a spot on the team. He’s _not ready._ The accords don’t only say that we can’t act without permission, they say we _must_ act when it’s deemed necessary by the committee. He won’t have a choice to say no to the Avengers anymore…he’ll get mixed up in whatever we’re asked to do from now on.  And, to top it all off, they won’t let him sign the accords as ‘Spider-Man.’ He’ll have to give up his identity.”

 

“Tony, this sort of thing is _exactly_ why we’re against the accords. How could you not see that?”

 

Tony felt like he’d been slapped. “I did what I had to,” he said through gritted teeth. “What I had to in order to protect everyone! I never---I didn’t—“

 

The silence that followed went on for so long that Tony thought Steve hung up. Then, finally, “Okay, Tony. Look… I’ll try to help. I just don’t know how much I can do.”

 

“You were against the accords from the beginning. I was hoping you might have some insight about how to get the kid out of this situation. I was wondering if I could use his age to try and buy some time…”

 

“I don’t know, Tony. He’s old enough to legally sign a contract like the accords, so I don’t think just the fact that he’s young will be enough…”

 

Tony mumbled something incoherent.

 

“Wait a minute… how old is this kid exactly?”

 

“He’s… well—like I said, he’s on the young side… I’m—he’s … almost 16…”

 

When Steve responded, his voice was low and disbelieving. “Jesus, Tony.”

 

Tony didn’t say anything. He ran a hand over his face. He’d been dreading this part.

 

“You brought a 15-year-old into this?!”

 

“Look, he was already out there doing the Spider-Man thing _before_ I ever got involved—“

 

“That doesn’t make this okay! God, I thought he was at least in his 20s…”

 

“I know, okay? I know! I was desperate. I needed help to bring _you_ in! I fucked up, alright? But I don’t want the kid to suffer for my mistakes. I need to protect him from Ross.”

 

“How much time are we working with?”

 

“Two weeks to sign the accords. Then, if not… Ross is sending out a squad to bring him in.”

 

“I don’t think they’ll care how old he is, Tony. We aren’t really people to them, are we? We’re weapons.”

 

Tony swore. “I can’t make him reveal his identity. I can’t force him to be part of the Avengers if he’s not ready. The kid’s been through a lot, ok?”

 

Steve was quiet for a moment.

 

“I know I’ve been an idiot. I know. But I can’t do this to him.”

 

“You really care about him, don’t you?”

 

Tony was horrified to feel a lump rising in his throat. Rather than answer, he blinked hard, downed some more scotch, and said, “I’m just trying to take some responsibility. Like I’ve been trying to do since Sokovia.”

 

Steve hesitated on the other line. “I know. You’re doing what you think is right. That’s all you can do. I think… I might have an idea.”

 

“Care to share?”

 

“Honestly, Tony, the less you know about this, the better. Try to stall with Ross. I’m going to do what I can for the kid. That’s a promise.”

 

“Okay.”

 

“In the meantime… you need to tell the kid what’s going on. He needs to know to lay low for a while.”

 

“I know. I—Rogers… thank you. I know this was too much to ask—“

 

“No, Tony, it’s not. We’re still family. That’s what we do for each other. I wish we had agreed on the accords… I really do. But I’m still holding out hope that there’s a way this all resolves with us fighting on the same side again.”

 

“Me, too. Take care of yourself, Rogers.”

 

Tony closed his eyes as he ended the call, praying that he wouldn’t live to regret this. Yet, he found that even after everything they’d been through, he still trusted the words of Captain America.   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep the comments coming, they make my day! I really appreciate suggestions/feedback! :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony fills Peter in on the situation with Ross.

“Peter, wake up!”

 

Peter groaned. “Five more minutes, Aunt May…”

 

“Nope. Now!” May entered the room and turned on all the lights. Peter hissed dramatically like some kind of vampire. May rolled her eyes. “You’re going to be late again, Peter. If I get one more call from your principal, I swear—“

 

“Coming, coming,” Peter grumbled. He stumbled out of bed, brushed his teeth, tried and subsequently gave up on making his hair lie flat, and shuffled into the kitchen for breakfast.

 

“Late night?”

 

Peter yawned ostentatiously in response.

 

May just chuckled. “I was up too, you know, waiting for you to get home.” She ruffled his hair, setting down fried eggs and toast in front of him.

 

“Thanks, May,” Peter said. As he inhaled his breakfast, May sat down across from him with her coffee.

 

“What kept you so late?”

 

Peter hesitated. He knew that transparency was part of the new deal with May, but it still felt weird. He hated to worry her. “Well—I was actually going to be home pretty early, but then Karen picked up something on the police scanner—“

 

“Karen the suit lady?”

 

Peter chuckled. “Yeah. I made that name up for her, actually. I could have called her anything.”

 

May looked bemused and nodded for him to continue.

 

“Yeah, anyway… Karen told me this lady was being followed and that the police were still far away so I went to see if I could help her.” Peter frowned, looking down at his empty plate. “He hurt her, May, and I couldn’t get there fast enough. He just threw her into a wall…”

 

May’s knuckles went white as she gripped her coffee cup tighter. She didn’t say anything, just nodded encouragingly as Peter kept talking.

 

“I—there were two guys. I webbed up the first one but the second one—he was the one who hurt her. I was so mad I hardly knew what was happening. I just wanted to _hurt_ him. I—“ Peter remembered vividly how he’d brutally beaten the man, continuing to attack even when he raised his hands in surrender. “The only reason I stopped was because the woman I was trying to save was looking at me like I was a monster,” Peter whispered. “It kind of brought me back to myself. I—what’s wrong with me, May?”

 

May reached out her hand for Peter’s, closing her fingers around his. “Hey. Look at me,” she said. “There’s nothing wrong with you. You sacrifice everything to protect people who can’t protect themselves. You were angry last night because you care so fiercely. We all lose control sometimes. You have to remember, though, Peter, that you’re different from the rest of us. If you lose control, it could be disastrous. You don’t want to do something you’ll regret. Remember what Ben always said… with great power—“

 

“Comes great responsibility,” Peter finished solemnly. He squeezed May’s hand, smiling at her. “Thanks, May.”

 

May smiled back. “I’m so proud of you. Ben would be too.”

 

Peter hugged her, grabbed his lunch, and headed off to school.

 

 

On the subway home, Peter received a text from Happy.

 

_I’m picking you up tonight at 7 to take you to headquarters. Tony needs to see you._

Peter blinked. The last time he was at headquarters, he’d turned down Mr. Stark’s offer to join the Avengers.

 

_What if I have plans?_ Peter shot back. Not because he did, but because it was fun to mess with Happy.

 

_You don’t._

Peter laughed, pocketing his phone and bobbing his head along to the Ramones song blaring from his headphones as the subway approached his stop.

 

After a hasty dinner with May, Happy arrived. Peter jumped into the back of the car, backpack full of homework in tow at May’s insistence, smiling broadly. “Happy! Man it’s been forever! How have you been? What’s—“

 

“Kid, do me a favor and stop talking. I’ve got a killer headache.”

 

Three quarters of an hour later, Peter and Happy arrived at the Avengers headquarters. Tony met them in the lobby, and Happy immediately departed for one of the guest rooms, grumbling about his headache. Tony smiled weakly at Peter, who was practically bouncing.

 

“Mr. Stark! It’s so good to see you. I missed you! I mean—sorry that’s awkward. I mean, I—“

 

Tony cleared his throat. “Sorry to puncture the happy reunion bubble kid, but we’ve uh… got some things we need to talk about.”

 

Peter cocked his head. “Is everything okay?”

 

Tony didn’t respond immediately, but gestured toward one of the rooms off of the lobby. It was spacious and comfortable, with a mini-fridge, plush armchairs and an ornate fireplace. Peter’s eyes were wide as he took in the room and Tony was again forcibly reminded of how little luxury the kid was accustomed to.

 

“Anything to drink, kid? Scotch?”

 

“Mr. Stark, I’m not old enough to—“

 

“Relax, boy scout, I’m only joking. Diet coke?”

 

“Um, yeah, sure. Thanks.”

 

Peter accepted the can of soda gratefully, popping open the tab and sitting gingerly down on the nearest armchair. Tony noticed with a pang that the kid was holding the soda as far as possible away from the chair to avoid spilling on the expensive upholstery. As if he even _could_ spill with his crazy spider reflexes.

 

“So, I guess you’re probably wondering why I called you here…”

 

Peter nodded politely, looking up at Tony with wide, trusting eyes.

 

This was going to be a hell of a lot harder than he’d thought. He sighed heavily. “Peter, I know I didn’t exactly fill you in much when I asked you to come to Berlin with me.”

 

Peter was surprised. He didn’t know what he’d expected from this meeting, but it wasn’t this. “Berlin? That was months ago.”

 

“Yeah. It was. But—there’s something going on that’s… it’s difficult. And you need to know the whole story before we can get into it.” Tony took a deep breath. “Do you remember what I told you about Cap?”

 

“You said he was wrong, but that he thought he was right,” said Peter automatically, as if he’d committed the words to heart. “You said that made him dangerous. You also said to go for his legs.”

 

Tony was a little astounded, pretty sure that was indeed _verbatim_ what he’d told the kid. “Um, yeah. And—strictly speaking—in my opinion at least… that was true.”

 

Peter just waited for him to continue, sipping at his diet coke. Tony willed himself to go on. “So… the reason that I asked you to come that day is because we were outnumbered. We needed Cap to come in and—“

 

“Sign the accords,” Peter finished for him. “Yeah. It was all over the news after what happened in Vienna.”

 

“Do you…ah… know what the accords said?”

 

Peter hesitated. “It was pretty vague on the news. You said…you told me that the accords were rules made by the United Nations to help keep the Avengers accountable.”

 

Tony nodded. “Basically, the accords say we only get involved in a situation when a committee of people chosen by the United Nations says we can. That means we _must_ get involved when they say we must and _can’t_ get involved when they say we can’t.”

 

Peter’s brow furrowed. “I guess if it really keeps people safer… but what happens when you disagree with the committee?”

 

Tony was vividly reminded of Steve. _The safest hands are still our own._ “We have to trust that the committee knows better.”

 

Peter was troubled. That didn’t sound right. A dull flush rose to his face. He was so desperate to impress Mr. Stark that he’d barely bothered with the details of what they were fighting for in Berlin.

 

Tony pressed on. “Secretary of State Ross was in charge of the accords. I supported them along with Nat, Vision, and Rhodey. Steve…disagreed. Wanda, Clint, and Scott joined him soon after to help him protect his friend Bucky from the feds.”

 

Peter was seized with a sudden realization, ashamed that he’d neglected to ask before now. “But—what happened to them? After we captured them in Berlin, I mean? I know Captain America and his friend escaped but… the others?”

 

Tony hesitated. “Peter…”

 

“Were they forced to retire?”

 

“Peter, it’s more complicated than that. They broke the law.”

 

Peter looked horrified. “What happened to them, Mr. Stark? They’re not—they didn’t—“

 

“No, no. They’re um… I think the technical phrase is ‘at large,’ actually.”

 

Peter looked up, quizzically. “At large?”

 

“Well, they escaped from a maximum security federal prison, so I think that’s the proper term…”

 

“They went to _prison?_ ”

 

Tony just nodded.

 

“But—if they really broke the law… shouldn’t they have gotten a trial? I didn’t see anything about a trial on the news…”

 

Tony felt almost sickened by the kid’s naiveté. He could barely summon the willpower to keep talking. “They… didn’t get a trial, kid.”

 

Peter was dumbfounded. “How—I don’t understand how they could… besides, there’s no prison that could hold… what was her name? Wanda? I mean, I know that Falcon and that um, giant guy, their powers come from their tech, right? But Wanda’s… she’s like me. Her powers are part of her. She could break out of any prison!”

 

“Kid… Ross has been dealing with people like us for a long time. They have tech too, you know. There’s a particular piece of tech that looks a little bit like a collar, and it actually cancels out some abilities...”

 

Peter’s eyes narrowed. His voice was barely a whisper. “They… collared…her?”

 

Tony could hardly meet the kid’s eyes. “She stood against the accords.”

 

Peter slowly stood from his seat on the armchair. Tony was alarmed to see that he was shaking. “I thought—I didn’t know…”

 

This was only going to get harder. Hating himself, hating the world, Tony said, “Peter… your activities in New York have been noted by Ross.”

 

The faintest flicker of comprehension crossed Peter’s face. He stood, rooted to the spot, staring blankly at Tony.

 

“I—when we signed the accords, I thought they only applied to Avengers… it turns out that wasn’t entirely accurate,” Tony sighed. “Ross wants you to sign them.”

 

“But… I’m not… I didn’t agree to be an Avenger. I told you—I’m not ready—“

 

“Ross doesn’t care about that, kid. You’re physically enhanced. The government can no longer tolerate that much power left unchecked.”

 

“I… Mr. Stark... but how will I keep saving people in New York if I have to ask permission every time I want to do something?”

 

“We can work out those details with Ross.”

 

A look of complete and painful understanding finally consumed Peter’s features. “You want me to tell them who I am! You… I….I can’t sign those accords as Spider-Man, can I?”

 

“Secret identities aren’t going to cut it here, kid. I can assure you that I’ll do everything in my power to—“

 

Peter was shaking his head violently, backing away from Tony with a look of utmost disbelief on his face. “I can’t do this. I can’t. What about May? If people find out I’m Spider-Man, she could get hurt… Please, Mr. Stark. Please. I can’t—“ Peter’s voice shook. “I can’t lose her. I _won’t.”_

 

The look of betrayal on Peter’s face was enough to make Tony feel as if he’d been stabbed through the heart. He took a deep breath, continuing. “Kid… Ross gave me two weeks to get you in to sign the accords.”

 

Peter’s eyes were brimming with tears now. “Or what?! He’ll put a collar on me, toss me in prison?”

 

Tony didn’t respond. His silence was enough.

 

Peter angrily wiped tears away, gathering up his backpack. He strode toward the door, looking back at Tony. “I trusted you,” he said hollowly.

 

“Kid… kid, wait—“

 

But Peter was already through the front door, swinging off into the night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please please comment with feedback/your thoughts! :D


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve offers Peter some hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I am simply blown away by your kind words and the kudos. I LOVE all of you to pieces, thank you for reading. :D I'm having a blast writing it.

Tendrils of panic snaked their way through Tony’s chest. He knew that he should follow Peter, keep him from doing anything stupid, but he was paralyzed.

 

_I trusted you._

 

The hurt in Peter’s eyes, the utter incomprehension, reminded Tony painfully of his own confrontation with Steve in Siberia.

 

He’d kept the kid as ill-informed as possible, cashing in on his blind trust. Tony remembered with shame the night he talked to Peter in his shabby bedroom and how he’d noticed the Iron Man mask on the shelf and Iron Man figurine standing sentinel on the desk. The kid clearly idolized him. So much so that his excitement and eagerness to impress overcame his natural inquisitiveness. He’d barely asked a single question.

 

Tony wondered if, on some level, he’d neglected to tell the kid the details of the accords because he suspected he wouldn’t be on his side if he had. Tony never tried to conceal his identity. His life was characterized by a brand of unconcerned brazenness that few rivaled. Announcing he was Iron Man during a press conference, advertising his address to a known terrorist, bringing a high-school student into a dangerous battle … That was Tony all over. That wasn’t Peter. Peter was self-sacrificing and empathetic and heartbreakingly sweet. The few people that he still had he loved with fierce abandon. He was _so not bitter_ in a world that had done nothing but take from him. Tony was different. No matter how hard he tried to be a better man, the truth was that when he first became Iron Man it was to save himself. Peter first became Spider-Man to save other people.

 

For the second time, Tony called the number pre-set in Cap’s phone.

 

“Tony. Any updates?”

 

“I filled the kid in. It didn’t go well.” 

 

“I wouldn’t think so. Is he still with you?”

 

“No. He—left.”

 

“It went _that_ badly?”

 

Tony sighed heavily. “Rogers… he didn’t know. Not just that Ross wants him in to sign the accords. He didn’t know about the raft. He didn’t even know the specifics of the accords.”

 

“You brought him to Berlin without telling him what the accords meant?”

 

“I’m not proud of it.” Tony could feel the judgment pulsating from Steve even through the phone.

 

“Did you at least tell him to lay low?”

 

“We didn’t get that far, to be honest… but he knows about the 2-week ultimatum. He’s a smart kid.” _Smart but devastated. What if he tries something…_

Tony’s desk phone started ringing. Ross. “Fuck. Look, Cap, I’ve gotta go and try to appease Ross, alright? I promised him an update. Please… do what you can for the kid. He’s in bad shape.  I’ll try to hold off the feds as long as possible.”

 

Tony disconnected the call.

 

Steve couldn’t believe Tony. Bad enough that the kid was a high school student, much less a high school student with no concept of what he was being dragged into. Even though he didn’t know Spider-Man, Steve couldn’t shake the growing feeling of worry for the kid. If he’d really taken off from headquarters, he was probably distraught. Steve sighed. “Guys… I have to go take care of something.”

 

“What? No one’s going out! It’s too dangerous… besides, you _know_ we have bigger things to worry about right now than Stark’s babysitting issues.”

 

“It’s more complicated than that, Sam, alright? I’m putting you in charge until I get back.”

 

“But—“

 

“I’m leaving. Look after the others. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

 

Sam looked as if he wanted to argue more but must have seen the finality on Steve’s face. He grimaced but just nodded. Clint, Scott, and Wanda looked on but didn’t comment.

 

Steve left the abandoned warehouse in Brooklyn that they took refuge in. They’d been on the move for months, making their way closer and closer back to New York City.  

 

Even wearing a nondescript gray hoodie, jeans, sunglasses, and baseball cap, Steve worried about being recognized. Anyone who looked at him too long or a random surveillance camera still made him antsy. He’d seen the state of his friends when he’d rescued them from the raft and was in no hurry to share their experience.

 

Steve headed for Queens, wondering if he would be able to find the kid. Other than the fact that he was from Queens, Steve had no other leads for finding him. Yet, Steve knew, if the kid was truly devastated he might be more inclined to patrol home turf. People were sentimental that way. Steve was sentimental that way. There was a reason that he’d chosen Brooklyn for their hideout.

Steve ducked into an alleyway, holding the handheld radio he and the ‘Secret Avengers’ (as they’d been dubbed by the media) used to listen in on police scanners. They still helped when they could, but it was getting more dangerous to show their faces. Ross was determined to re-capture them.

 

Steve listened to the scanner for nearly an hour before he heard a reported mugging nearby. Running as fast as he dared without drawing unnecessary attention to himself, Steve approached the scene.

 

The victim of the mugging was a man who appeared to be in his 30s with nicely styled hair and an expensive looking suit. He was shaking from head to toe, emptying his pockets to a man holding a handgun. Steve scanned the scene and had almost resigned himself to intervening in the mugging before he saw what he was looking for. In a blur of red and blue, Spider-Man descended from a nearby building, webbing the handgun and yanking it from its owner’s hand. The victim of the mugging looked up, cowering where he stood while Spider-Man webbed the man up for the police.

 

“Here’s your wallet, man! Probably best not to walk through this neighborhood at night all alone though, ok?” The man nodded gratefully, accepting the wallet from Spider-Man and heading for the main road to call a cab. The kid had turned to take off again when Steve cleared his throat loudly.

 

Peter turned rapidly, raising his hands and sliding into a fighting stance. “Who’s there?! Show yourself!”

 

Cap put up his hands, approaching the kid slowly. “It’s okay. I’m a friend.”

 

Peter made no move to relax. “Who are you?”

 

“You mean you don’t recognize me after our fight in Berlin?” Steve grinned, removing his sunglasses.

 

“Oh my God … you’re…! _Captain America!”_

 

“You can call me Steve, okay?”

 

“Sure thing Cap! I can’t believe this is happening! I—I stole your shield! I’m—I’m sorry about that…heh…”

 

Steve chuckled. He really _was_ young. He remembered with a pang that he’d slammed this fifteen-year-old kid the face with his shield and kicked him in the chest. “Look… don’t freak out, okay? Tony told me about your situation with Ross.”

 

The kid’s posture changed immediately. He stiffened, backing away. “You’re working with him now?”

 

“He called me because he was worried about you.”

 

Peter scoffed. “Yeah, right.”

 

“It’s true. Look, Tony and I have our differences but… we’re still a family. Families protect each other. Just like Tony is trying to protect you.”

 

Peter didn’t say anything. He looked down at the ground, shuffling his feet. “Cap… I didn’t know what you were fighting for in Berlin,” he said. “I just wanted to impress Mr. Stark. I’m—I don’t think I agree with the accords, either.”

 

Steve approached slowly. When Peter made no move to retreat, he placed his hands on the kid’s shoulders. “This isn’t about picking a side right now, alright? I understand how important it is to you to protect your identity. Tony… he told me there’s someone you’re trying to protect.”

 

Peter flinched under his hands. “My aunt. She’s the only family I have left. It’s my job to protect her.”

 

Steve nodded. “Look. There are two reasonable courses of action here. One option is to sign the accords, unmask yourself, and stand with Tony and the other Avengers. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Tony would do everything in his power to keep your aunt safe.”

 

“He might not be able to.”

 

“No,” Steve quietly admitted. “He might not.”

 

Peter looked down at his feet again.

 

“The second reasonable option,” Steve continued, “is to give up being Spider-Man.”

 

Peter flinched again. “I—Cap… this is who I am. I can’t give this up. When you can do what I can… and bad things happen to people… they happen because of you. I was responsible for the death of someone who loved me once. I can’t be responsible for any more people getting hurt or killed.”

 

“Are you leaning towards one of those choices, kid?”

 

Peter shook his head. “I feel like I can’t breathe. Both options are so horrible. It’s like I’m being asked to stand back and watch people be hurt or to put my aunt in danger. Either way I feel like I’m being ripped in half. I’m still out tonight doing my patrol because… I want to enjoy the last two weeks that I have still being me. I don’t know what I’ll do when the two weeks are up.”

 

Steve felt a rush of affection for this kid. He might have been only fifteen, but he was astoundingly mature, obviously intelligent, and clearly didn’t have an ill-intentioned bone in his body.

 

“What if I could give you some hope for a third option?”

 

Peter looked up, gaping at Steve. “Wh-what? A third option?”

 

Steve stepped back a little, crossing his arms over his chest. “Do you trust me?”

 

Peter hesitated. Steve knew that he’d just been burned by blind trust in Tony, knew that he was asking a lot.

 

Slowly, Peter nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, feedback/thoughts are so so appreciated! Your comments keep me writing. :) <3


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I am blown away by the positive responses to this fic. I am having so much fun and I soo love hearing what you think of it. :)

Satisfied that Cap would do what he could for Peter, Tony reluctantly answered the call from Ross.

 

“Where do we stand with the Spider-Man?” Ross barked without preamble. “I need to know if I should be assembling a team to bring him in.”

 

Tony chose his words carefully. “I know that we’ve had our differences, Ross, but you need to trust me on this one. He’s not a threat and he doesn’t need to sign the accords. He didn’t join the Avengers _because_ he isn’t ready to get involved on a bigger scale. Is it really worth it to send out an entire SWAT team to stop him keeping New York a little safer?”

 

“Do you call splitting a ferry full of civilians in half keeping New York _a little safer_?”

 

“Well, technically—“

 

“Save me the bullshit, Stark. You’ve been uncooperative at best throughout this entire initiative. Worse, you’ve done absolutely _nothing_ since the breach at the raft to help recover our prisoners despite my repeated attempts to get you involved.”

 

“ _Our_ prisoners? I never agreed to the raft, Ross.”

 

“You agreed to leave the decision making to the people who _deserve_ to make them.”

 

Tony could feel an angry retort rising in his chest. With great effort he mastered himself. He couldn’t afford to provoke Ross right now. “I—I’ll put more resources toward tracking down Rogers.”

 

Ross snorted. “My patience has run out, Stark. I need results, not empty promises. If you can’t help me find Rogers, perhaps the Spider-Man can once we’ve brought him in.”

 

“He doesn’t know anything.”

 

“No? I’ll need to make certain, though, once we have him. After all, this is a matter of national security. I have some colleagues whose interrogation methods have never failed to produce results.”

 

Tony felt bile rising in his throat, the threat hanging heavily in the air between them. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

 

“You might think traditional interrogation methods would have little influence on an _enhanced_ individual,” Ross continued ruthlessly. “But you’ll remember the collar that we utilized to great effect on Wanda Maximoff. I am told that the traditional interrogation methods are just as effective on enhanced individuals who have been restrained in that manner.”

 

There was a barely contained enjoyment in Ross’s voice that made Tony nauseous. He wanted to fight, to tear Ross limb from limb, and yet he knew that for the kid’s sake he had to be diplomatic. With effort, he controlled his breathing.  “That won’t be necessary.”

 

“I’ll decide what’s necessary. You have two weeks, Stark.”

 

Ross ended the call. Tony was reminded of the last time he’d tried to get Ross to listen to him when he’d discovered the truth about Zemo.

 

_You seriously think I’m going to listen to you after that fiasco in Leipzig? You’re lucky you’re not in one of these cells._

 

Tony knew Ross could be cruel and petty, yet he never imagined he would make open threats of torture. The thought of Peter collared and subjected to Ross’s interrogation tactics made Tony feel faint.

 

A light knock sounded at the door to Tony’s office. Vision entered, looking deeply troubled.

 

“Vision, we talked about eavesdropping,” Tony grumbled half-heartedly.

 

Vision did not deign to reply, drifting slowly toward Tony. For a moment, Tony thought he wasn’t going to say anything at all. Then, “When secretary Ross brought us the accords, I saw so clearly the two divergent paths that we were faced with. I believed signing the accords would result in the least conflict and loss of life.”

 

Tony nodded, waiting for Vision to continue.

 

“And yet, the further we find ourselves down this path, the more unanticipated turns it has taken. It is difficult to gauge the true intentions of human hearts. I cannot say whether Secretary Ross began this endeavor with pure intentions or whether it was an excuse to seize power. I chose, at first, to believe the former. Now I fear it is the latter.”

 

A flash of the night that Tony discovered his friends were being held at the raft clouded his mind.

 

_I had no idea they’d put you here, come on._

_This is a place for maniacs._

Tony knew that Ross was deeply prejudiced against those he termed _enhanced_ individuals, but had never appreciated the full extent of those feelings. The memory of poor Wanda comatose and straightjacketed with a blinking collar around her neck made Tony shiver. He remembered what Ross said about interrogation methods on enhanced individuals and hoped to God it wasn’t Wanda he’d been referencing.

 

In the aftermath of his battle with Steve, Tony stubbornly clung to the accords, determined to stay the course. If he was being honest with himself, he’d soured on the accords the moment he’d seen the raft. Perhaps he’d let his feelings of anger and betrayal keep him on a path that he no longer believed in just so that he could still stand against Rogers after what happened in Siberia.

 

_He’s my friend._

_So was I._

Tony remembered vividly the fear and rage he’d felt as Rogers brought down the shield into his arc reactor. Cap had left him there, broken and bleeding, helping Bucky to his feet and getting him out of there. The _murderer_ who’d choked the life from his mother. Still, he left the shield when Tony called him to as an act of attrition. Tony had it at the compound. For the first time he truly appreciated what it meant for Cap to be a fugitive, a war criminal, without his best weapon.

 

Vision watched Tony, his expression inscrutable. “The Spider-Man who fought with us in Berlin… he is different than most humans. Observing him in battle was enough for me to see that he is...unique. He has great power, and yet I sensed incredible restraint during the fight. He did not relish the infliction of pain and did not rise to anger when pain was inflicted upon him. I believe that he is as close to pure of heart and good intention as I have ever encountered. An unusual trait in one so young.”

 

“He _is_ different, Vis. And he’s been through so much.”

 

“You want to protect him from Ross.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“I will not stop you.”

 

***

 

Peter returned home, mildly shell-shocked. _Captain freaking America_ had tracked him down to offer him help with the accords situation. If he wasn’t so worried about the next two weeks, he’d be ecstatic. May was sitting up waiting for him.

 

“Hey, Pete. What did Mr. Stark want?”

 

Peter hesitated. His first impulse was to lie to May, to shelter her from the disastrous turn that his life had just taken. Yet, he knew that their relationship could not withstand more lies. He was desperate to preserve the fragile trust they’d rebuilt. He sighed, taking a seat beside his aunt on the couch. “Do you remember everything in the news about those accords?”

 

May’s brow furrowed. “You mean the ones signed in Vienna before that terrorist attack?”

 

“Yeah. Essentially they say that the Avengers… or any person with special abilities, really… have to get permission from a committee before they can act.”

 

May nodded. “Captain America didn’t want to sign them, right?”

 

“Right.” Peter hesitated. “Secretary Ross wants me to sign them.”

 

_“Secretary of State_ Ross?!”

 

Peter sighed heavily. “Yeah.”

 

“You don’t want to, do you?”

 

“No, Aunt May… it’s complicated. I became Spider-Man because I wanted to help other people. The committee is made up of different governments around the world, each with their own motivations. I don’t want to have to wait to help people or be told that I can’t. I also don’t want to be forced to get involved in things I think I shouldn’t. Besides… it’s like I told Mr. Stark before. I’m not ready to be an Avenger yet.”

 

May nodded thoughtfully. “That sounds like a difficult position to be in,” she said. “I’m sensing that’s not all that you’re worried about, though.”

 

“It involves revealing my identity to the government.”

 

May’s eyes widened. She leapt to her feet. “What!?”

 

“May…”

 

“Peter, this is _serious.”_

 

“I know it is, May. I know.” Peter grabbed her hands, looking earnestly into her face. “I promise, whatever happens, I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

 

“You think I’m worried about _me?_ ”

 

“If people find out who I am, they could come after you.”

 

May’s expression softened. “Peter, you may be Spider-Man, but it’s not your job to protect me. I’m your aunt. It’s _my_ job to protect _you_. I don’t like the idea of your identity being known by anyone, even the government. It could fall into the wrong hands.”

 

“I know, Aunt May. Mr. Stark said I have two weeks before… before I have to make my decision.”

 

May’s eyes narrowed. “Mr. Stark knew about this?”

 

Peter shook his head wearily. “No… I don’t think he knew that they were going to ask me to sign, actually.”

 

“We’re going to figure this out, ok, Pete? This is a _big_ decision. Just… don’t make it without me, alright? It’s late. We’re not going to figure out what to do about this tonight. Get some rest and we’ll talk more tomorrow.”

 

Peter nodded wearily, pulling his aunt in for a hug and shuffling off to his bedroom. May was freaked enough about the potential loss of his secret identity. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that the alternative was a spot in maximum security federal prison.

 

Cap had to take off shortly after giving Peter hope for what he called a “third option.” He told Peter to meet him the next night at an address in Brooklyn and to come alone and unfollowed. Peter wondered whether he should be warier of the situation, but felt he was rapidly running out of options.

 

_Do you trust me?_

 

He did, against all sanity, trust Cap. Logically, he understood that this could be a trap, but couldn’t get himself to consider that possibility with any real weight. Exhausted, he fell into bed without bothering to get undressed.

 

***

 

Steve returned to the warehouse in Brooklyn well after dark. Sam looked on with poorly concealed relief as Steve slumped at the small table they’d found in the basement. Wanda and Clint, alerted by the sounds of Steve entering, also made their way into the room.

 

“Mind telling us what’s going on?” Sam asked, joining Steve at the table with Wanda and Clint.

 

“Do you guys remember the spider kid from Berlin?”

 

Sam nodded. “Yeah. Punk.”

 

“Secretary Ross wants him to sign the accords now.”

 

Clint raised his eyebrows. “And that’s a problem because…?”

 

“Well for starters, he’s fifteen,” Steve replied.

 

Wanda’s brow furrowed. “Fifteen what?”

 

“Years old.”

 

“ _What?!”_ Clint shook his head violently in disbelief.

 

“I know.”

 

“Jesus…” muttered Sam.

 

“He’s also—Tony offered him a spot on the Avengers and the kid turned him down. He’s not ready to be involved in this, not yet. Besides, there’s a reason he wears a mask. He has family he wants to protect.”

 

Clint looked sympathetic. Wanda and Sam exchanged glances.

 

“This is what Tony called about the other day, isn’t it?” asked Sam.

 

Steve nodded. “Look, I know it’s a lot to ask, but… the kid needs our help. If he doesn’t sign the accords in two weeks, Ross is going to send out a team to bring him to the raft.”

 

Wanda started violently, leaping to her feet. “No!”

 

Steve’s heart wrenched painfully. He knew that of all the team Wanda had suffered the most in the raft. He was still haunted by the thought of her collared and straight jacketed, and he suspected that he didn’t know the half of what had happened to her at Ross’s hands. When he’d come to break them out of the raft, the others had been able to run to the helicopter he’d commandeered to retrieve them, but not Wanda. With difficulty he’d freed her from the collar and straightjacket, and still she sat staring blankly ahead. In the end, he’d carried her out, alarmed to feel her shaking violently against him. Steve knew that she still had nightmares about her time there. Sometimes he heard her screaming in her sleep.

 

Wanda looked up at Steve, wide-eyed with terror. “He’s like me, isn’t he?” she asked softly.

 

Steve knew what she meant. “Yes,” he said. “I’m not sure how he acquired them, but his powers go beyond the tech Stark gave him.”

 

Wanda stood to move beside Steve, looking at the others imploringly. “We have to help him,” she said.

 

Clint nodded. “It sounds like the kid didn’t know what he was fighting for in Berlin. We could use another person sympathetic to our side. Especially considering present circumstances.”

 

Sam looked hesitant. “I can see I’m going to be out-voted on this one. Just… are you sure we can trust this kid, Cap?”

 

Steve nodded. “I think it’s time to tell him what we know,” he said.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback and comments make my day and I would love to hear your thoughts on how to make the story better!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter is taken to the secret avengers hide out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented/left kudos/read this story :) I am so grateful for the support and suggestions! Also some of you commented on my Hamilton "reference" in the last chapter which was purely accidental (although I've listened to that musical countless times so was probably subliminally related :P) Enjoy!

“This is crazy, Sam,” said Steve.

“What’s crazy is bringing the kid here without taking any precautions,” Sam shot back.

“He’s not gonna agree to this.”

“Then we can’t have him here.”

Clint looked uncomfortable but nodded in agreement. “Sam’s right, Cap.”

Steve looked at Wanda appealingly. She pursed her lips, thinking. “I’ll come with you,” she said.

“Wanda—“

“ _Don’t_ tell me it’s too dangerous. I know what’s at stake if we’re caught.”

Steve opened his mouth to argue but closed it when he saw the fire in Wanda’s eyes.

 

Again, he remembered the night he’d broken them out of the raft. The rest of the team was in the chopper, breathing hard but clasping hands with each other, grinning widely from their adrenaline rushes. Their grins faded at the sight of Steve carrying Wanda. Scott offered his hand to Steve and hauled them into the helicopter as it departed.

Steve deposited Wanda gently into a seat. The others looked on as he unsuccessfully tried to get her to respond. “Wanda? Hey, Wanda. Can you hear me?”

Wanda did not answer. She continued to stare blankly straight ahead. Steve noticed that she had stopped shaking. He wasn’t sure whether that was a good sign. Icy terror gripped his chest. _What’s wrong with her?_

“Wanda!” He shook her shoulders gently and was alarmed when her head snapped forward. She’d made no attempt to brace herself.

“What should we do?” Steve asked the others, noticing and hating the note of fear that had crept into his voice.

Clint, Scott, and Sam all tried variations of Steve’s attempts to get Wanda to respond. Finally, they gave up, lapsing into silence.

“We could slap her across the face,” said Scott unhelpfully.

Steve glared at him.

“Look, we were all thinking it. I’m just saying—“

“No.”

“Maybe she just needs some time,” Sam said. “She’s probably in shock.”

“What happened to her when you were captured?” Steve asked quietly.

Clint scowled. “They—took her away separately. We tried to stop them but they already had our tech. They must have drugged us because the next thing we knew we were on the raft.”

“Was she there when you woke up?”

“No,” said Sam. “It was hours before they finally brought her to her cell. We all tried yelling to her, but we assumed she couldn’t hear us… her cell was more reinforced than ours were.”

Steve frowned. What happened to Wanda in those unaccounted for hours? Could it be permanent? He shook his head to clear that last thought, refusing to accept it.

 

As the “Secret Avengers” moved from hideout to hideout, on the run from Ross, Wanda recovered little by little. One morning when Steve took her hand in his, ready for his daily attempts to get through to her, she squeezed his hand back. Over the next several days, she started shaking her head no and nodding for yes. Finally, one evening, as Clint and Steve prepared dinner and Scott and Sam were sparring, Wanda spoke. “Wh-where are we?”

Steve and Clint immediately abandoned the beginnings of their meal and were joined by Sam and Scott who looked on, paralyzed mid-spar.

“Wanda!” Steve felt waves of relief crashing through him.  

She started shaking, then sobbing. Clint and Steve exchanged terrified glances, and Scott and Sam still watched, frozen.

“Wanda—“ said Clint weakly. He pulled her to him, holding her and stroking her hair as she cried. Steve watched in horror, feeling more powerless than he ever had.

It seemed that Wanda would never stop, but finally she did, falling asleep right on Clint’s shoulder. Clint carried her to one of the cots, gently putting her down without waking her.

The next morning, Wanda seemed almost back to her old self. She made no mention of her breakdown and the others followed suit. Together they traveled, never staying in one place for too long. They helped when they could, listening to local police scanners, but it became more and more dangerous as their faces were plastered all over the news.

 

They stayed up late into the night, talking about the accords and ways to dissolve them, to rework them, to fix them. The conversations never yielded much. Steve didn’t know how long they would have lived like that if they hadn’t received the news that propelled them rapidly back to New York.  

 

Steve shook his head to clear it. He thought of Wanda as a younger sister, but he knew that she was an adult more than capable of making her own decisions. She, more than anyone, knew what it meant to be imprisoned in the raft. “Fine, you can come. I told the kid to meet us at nine.”

 

At 8:30, Steve started up the van they’d acquired during their travels. Wanda clambered into the passenger seat. Neither of them talked much as they approached the agreed upon location on the other side of Brooklyn. Steve parked a couple of blocks from where he’d agreed to meet the kid. He and Wanda exited the van, both with dark clothing, caps, and sunglasses. Wanda wore one of Steve’s old T-shirts that nearly reached the knees or her faded jeans, nervously running her fingers through her long hair. Steve often forgot how young she really was. Not for the first time, he considered asking her about the raft, but he didn’t want to make her relive it.

He turned to Wanda. “Stay behind me, okay? He’s expecting me to come alone and I don’t want him to take off.”

Wanda nodded, shifting to stand behind Steve as they approached the meeting spot. Steve was half surprised to see that the kid really had shown up.

“Spider-Man?” called Steve.

The kid turned to face him, posture wary. “Cap! Hey—I uh… came alone, like you asked. I made sure I wasn’t followed.”

Steve nodded. “I brought a friend,” he said hesitantly. “I know that wasn’t part of the plan, but…she’s here to help.”

Wanda stepped out from behind him, hands raised in a surrender-like posture.

Peter took several steps backward, looking nervous. Seemingly in spite of himself he gushed, “You’re—the _Scarlet Witch_! I remember you from Berlin! You have the coolest powers _ever!_ I—um… I’m sorry about Berlin by the way... It was…complicated.”

Wanda gave a small smile. “Please call me Wanda. I once fought for something I didn’t fully understand too,” she said gently. “The Avengers gave me a second chance.”

Peter nodded. “I—don’t know how I feel about the accords, now that I know what they really are.”

“We’re not here to bring you to our side, kid,” said Steve. “We’re just here to fill you in on a certain… situation… that may make your current predicament irrelevant.”

The kid looked intrigued. “What do you mean?” he asked.

Steve hesitated, inwardly cursing Sam and Clint. “Look, kid, we can’t talk about this here, we need to go to our…for lack of a better word, it’s a hideout.”

“Cool, cool,” said Peter. “Where are we going?” he looked around as if expecting to see a sign directing him.

“Er—“ said Steve.

Wanda stepped in. “We have to blindfold you,” she said apologetically.

“Sorry?” said Peter. “You what?”

“Did you remove your suit’s tracker?”

“I disabled it before I came, like Cap asked,” said Peter nervously.

Steve sighed, removing the scanner that Clint had given him to confirm this. No tracking signal was detected. Peter watched the scanner anxiously.

“And we appreciate that,” continued Wanda. “But we can’t risk you telling anyone about our location.”

“I wouldn’t—I’d never—“

“You may not have a choice if you’re captured,” said Wanda softly.

Steve started in surprise, staring at Wanda. Did she mean what he thought she did?

“Are you talking about the raft?” Peter whispered.

Wanda paled visibly, but nodded. “This is as much for your protection as it is for ours.”

“I—I’m part of the reason that you ended up in there,” said Peter, his voice shaking. “I heard about the—the collar... I’m so sorry…I didn’t know.”

Wanda didn’t say anything for a moment. Then, “I just need you to trust us now. Let us help you.”

Peter hesitated. “Do I have to take off the mask?”

Steve shook his head. “We can put the blindfold over it.”

Peter looked as if he was considering bolting but finally relaxed in resignation. “Ok,” he said.

Wanda slowly raised the blindfold to the kid’s face, tying it securely behind his head. “Can you see?” she asked.

Peter shook his head. He was breathing hard, wondering if he’d made a mistake.

Steve put his hand on the kid’s shoulder. “It’s okay, kid. We’re going to get in the van now, alright?”

“You brought a _van?_ You’re blindfolding me _and_ putting me in a van?! Can I at least text someone goodbye before you guys crazy murder me?”

Steve heard the note of anxiety beneath the bravado and chuckled at the kid’s brave attempts to joke. “You’re okay, kid.”

 

Peter again wondered if this was advisable then recognized that it was too late to wonder that.  He probably should have told Aunt May where he was going, but he didn’t think that she would be thrilled to learn that her nephew was meeting with a war criminal in an attempt to avoid federal incarceration.  The shock might have actually killed her. Then again, Peter thought wryly, the shock of her nephew being murdered by the Secret Avengers would likely kill her too.

Wanda gently grabbed his upper arm and directed him into the back of the van. Steve got into the driver’s seat and looked back at the kid, blindfolded and visibly tense and sighed resignedly. He took off, taking the complicated route Sam had insisted upon back to the warehouse. He saw out of the corner of his eye that Wanda kept throwing anxious glances back at Peter.  

 

After what Peter guessed was about an hour, the van stopped. His heart was hammering so loudly it seemed impossible that Cap and Wanda couldn’t hear it. He heard their doors open and shut and then Cap’s voice as he opened the door nearest to Peter. “You ok, kid?”

Peter nodded.

“Once we’re inside we can take off the blindfold,” said Wanda.

Peter just nodded again, not trusting himself to speak. Wanda and Steve each took one of his arms and brought him into the warehouse. Sam and Clint were waiting, seated at the table, and so were—

“Nat! Scott!” Steve grinned. Releasing Peter, he pulled Nat into an embrace and shook Scott’s hand. “It’s great to see you guys! I’m glad you’ve managed to stay under the radar.”

“I thought they should be here for this,” said Sam. “This affects all of us now.”

Natasha raised an eyebrow at the sight of Peter blindfolded. “Jesus, are we planning to decapitate the kid?”

Sam flushed. “Make fun all you want, but who would be laughing if the kid told Tony or Ross where we’re hiding out?”

“Um… can I take this blindfold off now?”

“Shit, sorry…” Steve backpedaled and removed the blindfold from Peter’s mask. Peter took a deep breath, taking in the sight of Black Widow, Falcon, Hawk-Eye, Ant-Man, Captain America, and Scarlet Witch looking at him intently. Half of him was petrified and the other half of him wanted to ask for all of their autographs. For a moment, no one said anything.

Peter, ever uncomfortable with awkward silences, said haltingly, “I um. I just want everyone to know that I—in Berlin… I didn’t know about th-the prison. And… I d-didn’t really know what was going on with the accords either. I should have… I shouldn’t have gotten involved with something I didn’t really understand. I j-just wanted to impress Mr. Stark…”

Natasha’s expression softened. “I signed the accords … but I turned against them in Berlin to help Steve and Bucky escape. I’ve been hiding out ever since. I didn’t know about the prison either, and neither did Tony. This whole mess got away from us, kid. It was a train wreck before you got involved. It isn’t your fault.”

The others muttered their agreement and Steve clapped Peter bracingly on the shoulder. “No one here blames you for what happened in Berlin. We’re all here because we want to help you.”

“How old did you say you were?” asked Natasha.

Peter gulped. “I didn’t. I’m um…about 20…”

“He’s fifteen,” said Steve bluntly.   
Peter turned to glare at him. “How did you—“

“Tony told me.”

“Tony knew he was fifteen?!” Natasha looked incredulous. “So what, he’s like… a sophomore in high school?!”

“I’ll actually be a junior this year—“

“Same thing, kid,” said Scott.

“Come on, man, sophomore year was really tough…”

“This doesn’t matter right now,” Sam interrupted. “We called you here because we want to tell you that you need to lay low. Stop doing the Spider-Man thing for now. It’s too dangerous.”

“Spider-Man is who I am,” Peter said. “I can’t give it up.”

“We’re not asking you to forever,” said Steve. “We’re asking you to for now. We—received intelligence about a month ago that’s going to change everything. The accords… Secretary Ross…the raft… it’s all going to be a non-issue here soon… if everything goes according to plan, that is. And if it doesn’t, well—we’ve got much bigger issues than the accords.”

 

Natasha and Scott exchanged significant glances. A somber silence fell over the group.

“What are you talking about?” asked Peter. His mouth had gone dry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think/leave suggestions for this to be better! I love reading your comments! :)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I am BEYOND blown away by all of your comments and kudos. Sorry it took me a while to get this chapter up! Enjoy. :)

It disgusted Thanos that the fear he inspired in his pawns did not translate to inspiration of competence. Loki and Ronan squandered his resources and drew unwanted attention to his objectives in the process. How foolish he'd been to expect success from anyone but himself.

 

Earth was of little consequence. He'd planned to leave its subjugation to Loki in return for the Tesseract. Yet, the insignificant little planet and its people managed to make repeated nuisances of themselves. Not the least of these nuisances was a group calling itself the Avengers, a group created in part because of Loki’s failings.

 

From afar, Thanos received intermittent reports of the Avengers’ doings, most of which did not interest him. One report did. A certain android known as Vision with a strange and powerful stone embedded in its forehead. Thanos flexed his fingers greedily at the thought of that stone, the incomplete infinity gauntlet heavy on his forearm.

 

He could easily wrest the stone from the android, but to do it without attracting attention to his ultimate plans was another matter. He couldn't afford to waste any more resources, and to that end would need to obtain the stone without alerting the Avengers.

 

Accounts of the accords and the subsequent fracture of the Avengers had reached Thanos, and he smirked at the memory. The governments of Earth had foolishly divided their best defense, one that was already no match for him. One man in particular, a Thaddeus Ross, seemed to have a certain level of control over what was left of the Avengers. Thanos prepared for his descent to Earth with a plan to use Ross in order to discreetly secure the android. Humans, Thanos reflected, were depressingly simple to manipulate.

 

***

 

Secretary Ross did not negotiate with terrorists. He told his subordinates as much after their summary of the situation. That was before he watched the footage they’d recovered and heard his daughter’s name come out of that _thing’s_ mouth.

 

Ross hadn’t seen or heard from Betty in years despite his repeated attempts to make contact. Bitterly, he wondered how Betty could have chosen a mutant over her own father. The Hulk was unnatural, an abomination, and in the end he would have ruined Betty’s life or even killed her. After the Hulk fled the country, Ross thought that with time, he and Betty could salvage their relationship. He was wrong.

 

As if the Hulk wasn’t enough, _more_ mutants had run amok, threatening the very foundations of society and creating chaos and destruction wherever they went. Ross had no control over them, and the other governments of the world had started to take notice. They thought him weak, and by extension they thought the United States weak. It was a situation that could no longer be ignored. Ross drafted the accords, presenting them as a way to hold the Avengers accountable and to facilitate peace and cooperation between enhanced individuals and the world’s leaders. They were received well.

 

The truth was that Ross had readied the raft for new prisoners long before he drafted the accords. Whatever he spouted about peaceful cooperation and the common good, he did not believe that super-powered vigilantes belonged in that picture. Ross would never be satisfied until he saw every enhanced individual imprisoned. He’d never really expected the Avengers to agree on the accords and had hoped that by the end of the resulting fallout they would all be secured in the raft. Things did not go as smoothly as he’d anticipated.

 

The video feed crackled with static but Thanos’s booming voice was quite clear. “I am Thanos… by now, your operatives will have told you what I am capable of. I have taken notice of the impressive amount of control you have managed to seize over a certain group of individuals calling themselves the Avengers. I believe that you and I have help to offer one another. I do not wish to harm the people of Earth…but there is something that I need from you in return. The Avenger known as Vision has stolen from me… Bring the android to me unharmed.”

 

Ross stared at the recovered footage incredulously. What the hell _was_ this thing?

 

Thanos continued speaking. “I implore you not to waste this opportunity to assist me. I do not forget loyalty when it is shown to me… nor do I fail to reward it. Refuse me, and I will destroy New York City.”

 

Ross was already planning to deploy a special ops team to defend New York. The beginnings of that plan died abruptly with Thanos’s next statement.

 

“As I said, I do not wish to hurt the people of Earth… including your daughter. Betty, isn’t it? I have intelligence regarding her current location. Don’t worry, she is safe… for now. For the sake of your daughter, keep the retrieval and delivery of the android discreet.”

 

The video continued with instructions on when and where to bring Vision, then abruptly cut out. Ross cleared his throat with great difficulty. He was suddenly fervently grateful that he’d insisted upon watching the footage alone. Ross ran a hand through his hair, staring at an old photo of Betty he still kept on his desk. Whatever intentions Thanos had for Vision were unlikely to end well, but that didn’t matter anymore.

***

Peter was dazed by what he’d just heard. “You mean… there’s a… an— _alien_ coming to New York?!”

 

Steve nodded. “We were tipped off a while ago.”

 

“By who?! What did they say, exactly?! How do we defeat this—this Thanos guy? When is he coming to Earth?!”

 

The group exchanged significant looks.

 

“Kid… this is too big for you to get caught up in. We didn’t tell you about this to bring you into it. We told you about it because we want you to be prepared for what might be happening in your city. We want you to trust us when we tell you to _lay low_ ,” Sam said, emphasizing the final two words.

 

Peter acted as if he hadn’t spoken. “Hey, my friend actually knows a _lot_ about alien tech—back when I had that glowy thing he—“

 

“Sam’s right,” said Steve, cutting Peter off mid-sentence. “Tony told me that you said you weren’t ready to get involved on a bigger scale. You need to remember that.”

 

“But—I said that before I knew that _—“_

 

“Look, kid,” said Steve, interrupting him again. “I brought you here because I wanted you to know that I don’t think the accords will stand in the face of this. This will be bigger than any threat we’ve ever faced. It could end in the _actual destruction_ of our planet. The accords aren’t dynamic enough for the war that’s coming. They’ll soon realize that they need every last hand on deck for this... whether or not they’ve signed the accords.”

 

Clint snorted. “Won’t be enough for Ross.”

 

“It’ll have to be,” said Natasha dangerously.

 

“Anyway,” said Steve wearily. “If we make it through this, the accords will have to be dissolved. Threats like this are exactly why we opposed them in the first place.”

 

“That’s the hope anyway,” added Wanda quietly.

 

Peter stared at them. “So I’m just supposed to sit back and _wait_ while you guys risk your lives fighting Thanos?!”

 

“Yeah, pretty much,” said Scott.

 

Peter glared at him. “No way, you guys. Come on, I can help—“

 

“Wanda, I’m starting the van back up. Blindfold the kid again, ok?” Steve said through gritted teeth. He hated shutting the kid down like this, but he’d made up his mind. He was far too young to be put in such a dangerous situation.

 

“ _Wait_ —“ Peter said desperately.

 

Wanda approached him hesitantly with the blindfold. For a moment Peter considered resisting but couldn’t bring himself to fight her. Resigned, he allowed her to again tie the blindfold over his mask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think! I love hearing from you guys! :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter attempts to take matters into his own hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Your comments make my day! :D

Peter was deposited unceremoniously in the same location he’d been picked up from in Brooklyn. That seemed like days ago. He was so full of hope that Captain America was going to swoop in and solve his problem. He felt positively dejected now that he knew the truth. To hear again that he was too young, that the mission was too dangerous, irked him. Had he not proven himself a hundred times over?

Whatever he’d told Mr. Stark about wanting to wait on the Avengers, it so clearly did not apply now. The circumstances had changed. They _needed_ him. Cap himself said the fate of the planet was in the balance. Was he supposed to stand idly by while the others risked their lives? Did they actually think that they could placate him into backing off by telling him about Thanos?

After returning home, reassuring Aunt May that he wouldn’t “forget” his phone at home again, and bidding her goodnight, he texted Ned.

_Stuff has gone from bad to worse._

Ned replied quickly. _I thought you said Cap was helping?_

_I thought so too, but…something really bad is happening. I’ll fill you in tomorrow at school._

_You’d better._

***

 

Tony tried not to acknowledge that he’d anxiously considered searching for Peter after his tracking device went offline. He might have, too, if he didn’t suspect that Cap was involved. He had to trust now that Peter was in better hands than his. _The safest hands are still our own._ Tony reflected that Cap’s hands had always been safer than his. It seemed that everything Tony touched turned to disaster.

Ross had gone mysteriously silent since their last conversation about Peter. No longer did he call asking for daily updates. Tony wasn’t sure whether to interpret that as a good or a bad sign. Part of him feared that Ross wasn’t going to wait the full two weeks he’d promised. He hoped that Cap was able to convince the kid to lay low.

The compound was a ghost town anymore, with Rhodey consulting for the military, Vision off on unexplained reconnaissance missions around the city, and Pepper running the company. Tony didn’t want to admit how much he missed the rest of the team. Even (and maybe especially) Rogers.

Tony finished the scotch he was drinking and poured himself another.

***

“He told you _what?!_ ”

“Ned, come on, we talked about this!” hissed Peter, sheepishly acknowledging a group of girls that had turned around to stare at Ned’s outburst.

“Sorry,” he said in a poor attempt at whispering. “But dude, this is _insane.”_

“I know,” said Peter.

“What are you going to do?! You only have a week left to decide about the accords.”

Peter felt the same nauseous uneasy feeling he always did when he thought about the decision facing him. “I don’t know. I don’t feel like Cap helped at all. He _did_ give me a third option, but it’s just as bad as the other two…”

“Maybe you _should_ think about laying low for a while, Peter,” said Ned cautiously.

Peter’s eyes widened. “Are you _serious?_ ”

“Well… it’s like Captain America said. You’re not an Avenger.”

“Neither is he, technically!”

Ned opened his mouth to respond but stopped abruptly as they were joined by MJ. He turned to her. “Why do you still sit with us? You said you have friends now.”

“I like to observe people in crisis. You guys are clearly in some sort of crisis.”

“We are _not—_ “ began Peter.

“Don’t have a fit,” said MJ, interrupting him. She pulled out her book. “Just pretend I’m not here. I’ll observe discreetly.”

Ned rolled his eyes. Peter put his head in his hands, resigned to waiting until after school to continue his conversation with Ned.

 

***

The van ride back to the hideout was silent. Wanda wasn’t meeting Steve’s eyes, and was staring pointedly out the window. Steve exhaled heavily. “You think I did the wrong thing?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to.”

Wanda didn’t reply for a moment. Then, “Do you remember the night that you got us out of the raft?”

Steve looked over at her, surprised. “Yeah,” he said softly.

“I barely remember it,” she said. “I didn’t recognize you. I hardly even knew who _I_ was.”

Steve had no idea what to say but didn’t want her to stop talking. This was the most she’d said about the raft since their escape and he wanted her to feel like she could share it with him. Maybe she _needed_ someone to talk to about it. “You were in bad shape,” he said finally.

Wanda nodded. “Ross—he asked me questions. About where you’d gone.”

Steve felt an icy chill pass through his chest. His mouth went dry. “What do you mean he asked you questions?”

“They put that collar on me. The pain was excruciating when I tried to use my abilities. I kept trying, though. It was all I could think of to do. Ross didn’t believe me when I said that I didn’t know anything… or maybe he did. I don’t know. They… tried different things to make me talk…”

“Wanda…” said Steve quietly. “I’m sorry. I never should have asked you to get involved.”

“No! That’s my _point_. I helped you because I wanted to, because I believed the accords were wrong. I knew what the risks were and I took them. You’re so obsessed with protecting everyone that you don’t bother to think about what _they_ want.”

Steve was stung. “I’m _obsessed_ with protecting people? Tell me how that’s a bad thing!”

“Because it makes you act like you know better than everyone else!”

“Maybe I do!” Steve yelled. Wanda flinched. He closed his eyes briefly, ashamed at his outburst. He was forcibly reminded of a conversation he’d had with Tony, back when signing the accords was still an option.

_He’d shouted at Tony, about keeping her in the compound. She’s a kid!_

And what had he done? Dragged that very same kid into a battle against the law, sending Clint to “rescue” her from the safety that Tony had designed for her. Guilt settled heavily in his chest. He didn’t know better at all.

***

 “Peter, I know I say this like every other time you do something, but I really _really_ don’t think that this is a good idea.”

 “Come on, Ned! You’re my guy in the chair! I need you guiding me for this!”

 Ned sighed heavily. “I hate it when you pull that on me,” he said, but the corners of his mouth were tugging up in a grin and Peter knew he was on board. Ned started up his laptop.                 

“Have you got the feed?”

“I’ve been hacking into satellite cameras since grade eight, Peter, don’t patronize me. I can’t actually see _in_ the compound, though. I’d have to hack into a security system designed by _Tony freaking Stark_ for that…”

“That’s okay,” said Peter hastily. “I just need the perimeter for now.”

Ned looked at him. “Explain to me again why we’re staking out the Avengers headquarters?”

“ _Because,”_ said Peter exasperatedly. “Thanos is supposedly coming to Earth right? If you were Thanos, wouldn’t you attack the place that houses the most powerful opposition you’d be up against?!”

“So what, you’re just going to hang out around the compound waiting for Thanos to show up? What if he does? Then what?”

“I don’t know, yet, ok?! I’m just trying to keep an eye on this. I have to do _something_.”

Ned sighed, putting in his earpiece with the air of someone who was washing his hands of the situation. Peter gave him a lopsided grin, pulled on his mask, and exited through the window.

Peter arrived near the Avengers compound in a little over thirty minutes. He still hadn’t reactivated his tracker, worried that Tony would figure out what he was up to. He realized with a start that he’d never asked Cap whether he’d warned Tony about Thanos. _Surely he did._

Ned spoke up. “Peter, something’s coming towards you!”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know… it’s really hard to tell…”

“It’s Vision,” said Karen crisply, augmenting his visual feed.

Peter saw that it was indeed Vision and that the android appeared to be moving slowly away from the Avengers compound. _Where is he going?_

“Shall I activate stealth mode?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Karen.”

Peter followed Vision for a while, getting as close as he dared. Stealth mode made his suit take on the appearance of its surroundings and muffled his sounds. Suddenly, Peter’s spider sense began to go off, blaring uncomfortably in the back of his head. “Karen, what’s—“ Peter swallowed the rest of his sentence abruptly when he realized with a thrill of horror that he wasn’t the only one following Vision. Three figures in dark clothing were moving quickly through the streets below.

“Federal agents, Peter,” said Karen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any suggestions/feedback/thoughts? I would LOVE to hear them!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter struggles over whether to trust Tony as Vision is tracked by federal agents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again I am so thankful for all of you and your support/comments! I read every single one of them and draw from the suggestions as I write! :) Enjoy this chapter!

Heart in his throat, Peter crept along behind the figures dressed in black. “Karen, what are those weapons?” he whispered.

 

“My scanners don’t recognize them,” said Karen crisply. “They appear to be some sort of projectile gun. Proceed with caution.”

 

Peter grimaced. “Ned?”

 

“It looks like they have backup. Another group of three and a group of five stationed around the tower. All holding those weird guns.”

 

Peter hesitated, watching as Vision floated along serenely, clearly unaware of the agents. _Why are they tailing Vision? Vision is on their side, isn’t he?_ Peter had no idea what the agents wanted with Vision but could tell from the way they moved and the uncomfortable pitch of his spider sense that their intentions weren’t good. They were clearly keen on not being noticed.

Peter was torn between shouting some kind of warning and going for help. He remembered with a jolt that he had no method with which to contact Captain America and the others. He was on the brink of asking Karen to call Tony when a terrible notion struck him. _What if Tony knows?_ Immediately, he dismissed the thought. _Tony wouldn’t._ He desperately wanted to believe it. _Just like he wouldn’t send his friends to the raft?_

 

In the time that Peter spent arguing with himself, one of the agents moved forward with a hand signal to the others. He stepped back, took aim at Vision, and fired his strange weapon.

Peter felt the energy even from a substantial distance away. His spider sense shrieked as a bolt of voltage violently snaked its way through the air toward Vision. Just in time, the android noticed his attackers and maneuvered deftly out of the path of the ray. Similarly, he dodged the second bolt shot at him from the other agent. As he rapidly ascended in an attempt to escape, he was hit by the third.

 

Peter let out a wordless shout that no one heard. The blast hit Vision square in the chest and appeared to spread from its point of impact like a cancer, encasing Vision, binding his arms and legs at his sides. Peter could only watch in horror as Vision fell from the sky, crashing to the ground in front of the agents. He sprang forward, ready to jump into the fray when Ned shouted in his ear, bringing him back to his senses.

 

“Peter no! They’ll just catch you too! There are too many of them… You have to go to Mr. Stark for help!”

Peter ground his teeth. “They could kill him!”

 

“Peter, you can’t help him unless you make it out of here!”

 

Peter felt as if a knife was going through him. He’d been distracted, paralyzed and indecisive. He’d missed his opportunity to warn Vision. _This is my fault. I saw it happening and I did nothing._ He closed his eyes tight, letting a hot wave of shame momentarily consume him before steeling himself and running toward the Avengers tower.

 

***

 

Secretary Ross answered his phone, feeling tense and ill. All he could think of was his daughter. “Is it done?” he barked into the phone.

 

“Yes, sir. We’re transporting it now.”

 

Ross hesitated, hearing the falter in the agent’s voice. His throat tightened. “ _But?”_

 

“One of the guys… he said that he saw someone nearby, running off toward the Avengers tower.”

 

“Did I not impress upon you the vast importance of _not being seen_?” Ross hissed.

 

The agent cleared his throat uncomfortably. “We’re not sure if he actually saw anything…”

 

“What did he look like?”

 

“Couldn’t get a good look in the dark, sir, but it sounds like he was wearing some kind of skin-tight suit and a mask…”

 

Ross swallowed hard, fear and rage building in his chest.

***

Tony had been trying unsuccessfully to fall asleep for what felt like hours. As a general rule he didn’t sleep well, but since Ross’s announcement about Spiderman and the ensuing argument with Peter, he hadn’t achieved even the pitiful amount of sleep that was typical for him.

 

Suddenly, FRIDAY’s voice sounded. “Someone at the door, boss. Request for entry.”

 

Tony’s brow furrowed. “What… at this hour?” He sighed heavily, giving up on any distant hope of getting some sleep. “Who is it?”

 

In response, FRIDAY pulled up the visual feed on Tony’s television and Tony saw and heard Peter, standing outside and shifting anxiously from foot to foot.

“Let him in,” said Tony. He dressed quickly and made his way down to the lobby to meet a clearly frantic Peter.

 

“Peter what is it? What’s wrong?”

 

The kid looked terrible. He was sweating profusely, and looked as if he himself hadn’t slept since his conversation with Tony. He opened his mouth to respond, then abruptly closed it, looking at Tony appraisingly, chewing his lower lip.

 

“Kid, come on.”

 

“Is there a way for you to get in touch with Captain America?” asked Peter finally.

 

“Cap?” Tony frowned. “I—what’s this about?”

 

Peter just shook his head firmly. “I just really really need to talk to him _right now_. It’s important and we don’t have much time.”

 

Tony crossed his arms, feeling stung. “Whatever it is you want to say to Cap you can say to me, Peter…”

 

Peter’s jaw visibly clenched. He was clearly having some kind of internal struggle, balancing whether he could trust Tony with the critical nature of whatever it was he needed. Finally he sighed. “ _Fine._ It’s Vision—“

 

Tony felt a stab of fear. “What about him? What’s happening?”

 

Peter searched Tony’s face earnestly and seemed to be reassured by whatever he saw in his expression. He relaxed a little. “They took him,” he said breathlessly.

 

“Who took him?”

 

“The government agents,” said Peter anxiously.

 

Tony’s eyebrows shot up. “Kid…”

 

“I know it sounds crazy but I saw it! They had—these _crazy_ weapons…and Vision—“ Peter trailed off solemnly. “Please, Mr. Stark, you have to come with me right now.”

 

Tony hesitated, then abandoned all pretense and nodded. “I’ll suit up. Meet me outside.”

 

Tony and Peter left the tower with Peter leading the way until they arrived where Vision was attacked. “It happened just over here—“

 

“Stop right where you are,” a cold voice said just behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please consider commenting, it makes my day ! :) I love to hear your feedback/suggestions!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Tony try to fend off Ross's forces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thank you to everyone for reading! I'm having so much fun and I've loved your comments/used them in my writing. :)

Wanda's face was pale and set. "It's happening tonight," she said quietly.

 

Steve nodded. The rest of the group sat in stunned silence, attempting to process the video transmission that Scott had intercepted.

 

Finally, Natasha spoke. "We have to call Tony."

 

"Wait," said Sam slowly. "If this is really going to happen tonight, don't you think that Ross is watching the compound? We don't want Ross to know we've seen this. It could put everyone in danger, including Vision. Right now, Ross is expecting this to go down with no problem. He won't be expecting any resistance."

 

Wanda narrowed her eyes. "We need to warn Vision," she said coldly.

 

Steve hesitated, looking at Sam. "Sam's right, Wanda. If Ross figures out that we know about this, he'll be more on guard... make it harder for us to stop him. Besides, there's nowhere for Vision to escape now without Ross finding out... he must already have eyes on the compound."

 

Wanda looked very much as if she wanted to continue arguing. Clint stepped in, putting his hand on her shoulder. "We'll be there tonight. To intercept them. To protect Vision. But they're right. We don’t want them to be expecting us."

 

Wanda bit her lower lip. For a moment Steve could swear that her eyes filled with tears but she blinked rapidly and her voice was quite steady when she asked "What about the woman? Betty?"

 

Steve had been wondering about that too. "I don't know," he said slowly. "I don't know if we should risk contacting her... it might tip off Thanos that something's wrong."

 

"Thanos will know something's wrong as soon as Ross fails to capture Vis. We have to get Betty somewhere safe."

 

Scott sighed heavily. "I'll go."

 

The group looked at him in surprise.

 

"What?! I can do stuff too, you know…”

 

Natasha cleared her throat. "I'll come with you," she said firmly.

 

 

**

 

Tony felt an icy chill of recognition. _Ross._

On the way to the site of Vision’s attack, Peter had hastily filled him in and Tony had desperately tried to convince himself that Vision had been captured by some external group, not by the feds at all…

 

Tony turned slowly to face Ross, his heart pounding. “Where’s Vision?”

 

For one strange moment, Tony thought he saw fear contort Ross’s haughty features but it was replaced so rapidly by a sneer that he wondered if he’d imagined it. Ross was joined from the surrounding shadows by more agents than Tony could count, all holding strange weapons. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said. “The reason that I’m here is because my agents have been tracking Spiderman, keeping tabs on him to ensure that he didn’t cause any trouble until he signs the accords. I’m afraid we have reason to believe that he’s been in contact with Steve Rogers.”

 

Tony felt the ground falling away from him. _My fault._

 

“The capture of Steve Rogers is paramount to public safety,” continued Ross smoothly. “We will be bringing Spiderman in to question him.”

 

“Like hell,” Tony said, roughly pushing Peter behind him. “Run!” he hissed at the kid, knowing it was no good, that Peter had never once obeyed a command to flee…

 

“I’m not leaving you!”

 

Ross smirked. “Are you wondering what these weapons are, Stark? They may not seem like much to an expert weapons manufacturer like yourself but allow me to assure you that they are more than they appear.”

 

“I’m serious kid, get the fuck out of here. _Now.”_ Maybe he could hold them off for long enough that Peter would be able to escape…

 

Peter ignored him, stepping deftly between him and Ross. “Mr. Stark has nothing to do with this,” said Peter softly. “Let him go and I’ll come with you.”

 

Ross looked as if he was considering this option. He’d primed for a fight, but the opportunity to capture Peter without drawing more attention to the situation was worth leaving Stark for now. Finally, Ross nodded curtly. “Restrain him.”

 

Two agents hurried forward. Tony moved violently toward Peter, shouting incoherently and grabbing his arm to drag him backwards, when one of the feds raised his weapon to Peter’s neck. “Let go or we’ll shoot.” 

 

Tony released Peter immediately, horrified by the sight of the gun to Peter’s throat. “ _No!”_

 

“It’s okay, Mr. Stark,” said Peter, his voice wavering. One of the agents produced the collar that had once restrained Wanda, opening it to place around Peter’s neck. Tony watched in horror, and at first he thought that the glowing red energy around the collar was some terrible new feature…

 

The collar left the agent’s hands so quickly that he cried out in shock, backing away from Peter as though burned. Next, the agent himself glowed red, rising above the ground before being violently thrown backwards. Tony let out a strangled cry of relief. _Wanda._

 

Wanda strode forward, fire burning in her eyes. Faster than seemed possible, she relieved each of the agents of their guns, hurling them from sight. The agents cried out, moving forward to recover their firearms when they were met by Scott, Natasha, Clint, Steve, and Sam all suited up for battle. Each of them engaged with an agent. In the ensuing chaos, Peter fled back to their side, webbing up an agent who was attempting to recover his weapon. Tony watched in shock for a instant before joining in the fray.

 

For a moment, Tony was reminded of old times. Nat landed a particularly vicious kick, incapacitating an agent that Clint then hit with one of his electric arrows. While she was busy with him, Tony took out an agent trying to attack her from behind. Soon they were standing back to back, fending off the feds. Steve was in rare form, even without his shield. He swept the legs out from two agents, punching a third squarely in the jaw. Many of the agents had given up on trying to retrieve their weapons and had pulled out handguns instead, shooting blindly into the chaos. Sam and Scott fought together, agents rushing forward to attack Sam and being surprised by an unseen Scott. Wanda stood back, using her powers to help when she could, nervous to hit one of the team by mistake in the chaos. Peter stood near her, fending off anyone who got too close.

 

Ross was backing away rapidly, panic evident on his face. He began calling for his agents to retreat, and all but one did so without question.

 

It happened so quickly that Tony wasn’t able to piece it all together until later. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end as the air was suddenly rent with a palpable force of electricity. Electricity focused into a single bolt, headed straight for Steve. A blur of red and blue moved faster than should have been possible, shoving Steve out of its path as the bolt hit Peter in the side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think! I love your comments/feedback! :)


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions rise after Peter is injured to protect Steve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow thank you all so much for your continued support. I love writing this fic and I love all of you! :)

Peter crumpled as the bolt spread to his extremities and forcefully lashed his limbs at his sides. Tony was dimly aware of a strangled yell from Rogers and blurrily registered Wanda knocking back the responsible agent with enough force to render him unconscious. A thin trickle of blood seeped from beneath his combat helmet and he was dragged to safety by two of his fellows as Ross and his forces moved out.

 

Tony still couldn’t move. He watched in a haze as Rogers and Wanda knelt by Peter, yelling to him. Other than a few strange twitches and the erratic rise and fall of his chest, the kid was still and silent. Tony would have felt better if Peter was screaming. His silence was deafening and contagious. No one spoke.

 

Wanda reached for Peter but Natasha threw out an arm to stop her. “It’s not safe.”

 

“Let me,” said Tony, finally finding his voice and gesturing vaguely at his suit. He knelt beside Wanda and Steve, putting an armored hand on the kid’s chest. Even with the protection of the suit he could feel a strong surge from Peter’s body. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., give me vitals.”

 

“Heart beat steady but erratic. Blood oxygen levels dropping. Stable for now but not indefinitely.”

 

“We have to move him. We can’t stay here,” said Sam softly.

 

Tony shook his head. “We can’t go back to the tower…”

 

“We have somewhere,” said Steve softly, staring in disbelief at Peter.

 

Tony nodded curtly. He lifted Peter from the ground, noting just how light he was and feeling horribly aware that he was only fifteen.

 

***

At the hideout, Tony put Peter on a cot, checking again on his vitals. Oxygen levels slightly lower. Tony felt a cold wave of panic. He cleared his throat painfully. “Look… I’m taking the kid’s mask off, okay? He needs some air, and I need a better idea of what’s going on with him. Just… his identity doesn’t leave this place, got it?”

 

Everyone nodded solemnly, stepping back to give Peter room. Tony gently removed the mask, revealing Peter’s face. He wore a grimace of pain, his eyes shut tight. His breaths came in unsteady gasps. A collective intake of breath went through the group as each of them registered just how young Peter really was. Tony ignored them. “Kid? Kid, it’s me. Can you hear me? Answer me, come on.”

 

Peter gave no indication that he’d heard.

 

Steve put a hand on Tony’s shoulder. “Tony…”

 

Tony whirled to face Steve, throwing his hand off. Sudden rage surged through him, splotching his vision and dulling his sense. “What the _fuck_ happened to convincing him to lay low? That bolt was meant for _you_!”

 

Steve’s features resolved into a look of understanding and sympathy that made Tony want to cave his face in even more.  “I tried, Tony.”

 

“It wasn’t enough!”

 

Natasha placed herself between Tony and Steve, putting a hand on each of their chests. “We don’t have time for this!”

 

Suddenly, a woman emerged from the other end of the room, moving hesitantly toward them.  “I might be able to help,” she said softly.  

 

Tony’s brow furrowed. “Who’re you?”

 

“Betty. Betty Ross.”

 

Tony looked murderous. Steve hastened to explain, aided by Scott and Natasha. Soon, they were all talking over each other, filling Tony in on Thanos and the intercepted video transmission.

 

Tony’s mind was swimming with a confused jumble of questions, not the least of which was why the hell they hadn’t contacted him about this sooner. He shook his head to clear it. All that mattered right now was Peter. He looked at Betty. “Can you really help him?”

 

“I can try.” She started moving towards Peter.

 

Tony wanted to stop her. He really did. But he couldn’t think straight. He just nodded helplessly. 

 

Betty approached Peter, concern etched into her features. She observed him for a while, then said, “This is definitely one of my father’s designs.” A note of disgust tinged her voice. “It’s putting a lot of strain on his muscles… and his heart. I estimate that this could be fatal within a matter of hours, which tells me that it wasn’t designed for long-term use. I’d guess that it’s meant to subdue and incapacitate for capture and transport.”

 

“You mean… this could actually _kill_ him?” Steve demanded.  

 

Betty nodded solemnly. “I assume he has some sort of special abilities or my father wouldn’t be interested in him. Whatever those abilities are, without them he’d probably already be dead.” She turned back to Peter, deep in thought. “I’ll need more time to examine him.”

 

“Do what you have to,” said Clint briskly. He put an arm around Wanda who was shaking and regarding Peter tearfully. Tony and Steve went silent, but both nodded grimly. The team anxiously waited as Betty carefully considered Peter. Despite their prior altercation, Tony and Steve stood near each other, slightly removed from the group.

 

“That should have been me,” said Steve.

 

“Yeah, it should have been,” said Tony harshly. Then, he sighed. “Might not have been anyone though, if I hadn’t put us all in this situation.”

 

Steve looked at Tony in surprise. “I should have given the accords more of a chance,” he said softly. “I’ve spent all this time thinking… maybe you were right. Maybe… staying together was the most important thing.”

 

Tony shook his head. “I didn’t see Ross for what he was.”

 

“None of us did. If I’m being honest… it all became much more about saving Bucky than it did about Ross or the accords.”

 

Tony visibly tensed at the mention of Bucky. Steve cursed himself internally.

 

“How is he?” Tony asked, making his voice as light as he could manage. The strain of it made him feel lightheaded.

 

“Safe.”

 

Tony just nodded.

 

Steve hesitated. “I know that nothing I say will make up for what I did, but…for what it’s worth…I’d do anything to take it back.”

 

Tony sighed heavily, gesturing miserably at Peter. “I know a thing or two about keeping critical information from people who deserve to hear it.”

 

Suddenly, Betty moved away from Peter, approaching Tony. “I have an idea,” she said.

 

Tony nodded for her to continue. The rest of the team gathered around, looking tense. Betty sighed. “There’s a powerful electric field going through his body,” she said. “He’ll go into cardiac arrest soon if we can’t relieve the tension on his muscles. I’m guessing that my father has a mechanism to cancel or remove the field… but I’m thinking there might be a way for us to replicate that here.”

 

Tony frowned. “We don’t have any equipment. Back in the lab, sure, I might be able to design something but…”

 

Betty interrupted. “I think we can make do with something simpler.” She hesitated. “And more dangerous.”

 

Tony crossed his arms. His eyes narrowed. The rest of the group shifted uncomfortably.

 

“What is it?” asked Steve finally.

 

“Another shock,” she said quietly. “Applying another electric shock to his body might just be enough to cancel out the field already going through his body.”

 

“But?” said Tony.

 

“It could kill him,” she said softly. “But like I said… I don’t think he has much time as it is.”

 

“No,” said Tony firmly.

 

Natasha spoke up. “What are we using to deliver the shock?”

 

“Well actually… I was thinking your taser gauntlets might do the trick.”

 

“No,” Tony said again.

 

Natasha looked at Tony severely. “Check his vitals again,” she said.

 

Tony did. The kid’s heartbeat was slowing and his oxygen levels were even lower. He cursed. Cold panic began to course through his veins.  “We can’t risk it,” he said.

 

“Tony look at him! He’s dying.”

 

Tony left Peter’s side, striding over to Natasha and grabbing her arm. He pulled the taser gauntlet up to eye level. “And what if _this_ kills him? What then?”

 

“Then at least we tried to save him!”

 

Tony opened his mouth, then shut it abruptly. He felt sick. Steve approached from beside him, putting his hand on his shoulder again. This time, Tony didn’t throw it off.

 

Wanda spoke up, looking at Natasha. “Do it.”

 

The rest of the team murmured their agreement. With great effort, Tony released Nat’s arm. He turned away.

Natasha walked slowly to where Peter lay. A flicker of compassion crossed her features as she looked into his face but disappeared as she steeled herself. She looked to Betty. “Tell me when.”

 

Betty nodded.

 

Natasha turned to Tony next. “Tony?”

 

Tony stood frozen for a moment, then walked up to stand next to Natasha. “Yeah. Do it.”

 

Natasha activated her taser gauntlet. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think! I LOVE your comments and read each and every one of them and actively use them to try and make my story better! Thank you! :)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things complicate for the Avengers as they try Betty's plan to save Peter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thank you all so much for your thoughtful comments. I hope you enjoy the chapter! :)

Natasha applied her taser gauntlet to the juncture between Peter’s neck and shoulder and activated it. Tony experienced such pain at the sight that he felt as if he were the one receiving the shock. It was brutal to witness yet more electricity pulsating through Peter’s body. He was wracked with it, seizing and thrashing on the cot. More terrible still was when it finally stopped. The grimace of pain that contorted Peter’s features subsided as his muscles finally relaxed.

 

Tony wished that sight brought him relief but instead a new and different horror consumed him. _Was he…_ Tony didn’t allow himself to finish the thought. He moved desperately towards Peter, again placing his armored hand on the kid’s chest. He felt no electrical surge this time. In a hoarse whisper, he requested vitals from F.R.I.D.A.Y.

 

“Pulse detected.” Tony felt as if he would collapse beneath the weight of the relief that he felt at those words. He turned to the others, nodding. They broke into grins, approaching Peter where he still lay unmoving. 

 

“Don’t crowd him,” said Steve sharply as he himself crowded closer to Peter than anyone else.

 

Tony knelt next to Peter, placing his hands on the kid’s shoulders. “Peter? Peter can you hear me?”

 

Suddenly, Peter gasped, sitting violently upright. With considerable strength, he threw Tony away from him. Completely unprepared, Tony sprawled on the ground.

 

“ _No_!” Peter was yelling, his voice hoarse with fear. “Get away from me!”

 

Steve moved in. He grabbed Peter’s arms, forcing him back to the cot as he struggled against him. “Kid! Kid it’s us, you’re okay!”

 

Finally, Peter’s eyes seemed to come into focus. He stopped struggling, but he was still breathing hard. “…C-Cap? Where am I? Wh-what happened?” Peter’s eyes frantically scanned the room, lighting on Tony. “M-Mr. Stark! Are you ok?”

 

Tony was getting back to his feet. “Kid,” he said. He couldn’t say any more. He felt a tightness in his chest and throat. Peter was _alive_. Peter was alive, and asking if _he_ was okay for God’s sake. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I’m alright. Try not to hit me when I’m not expecting it though, alright? I’m getting old.”

 

Peter flushed. “S-sorry… I didn’t know it was you…I--”

 

“Jesus kid, don’t apologize. I’m kidding.” Tony felt positively lightheaded at seeing Peter coherent. He looked him over carefully. “How do you feel?”

 

“I don’t know… weird. The last thing I remember was that guy who shot at Cap and then—“

 

“And then,” picked up Steve, “you took that bolt for me. Which, by the way, was completely unacceptable. If one of us has to get hurt out there it’s supposed to be _me_. Got it?”

 

Peter looked down. “I don’t even remember deciding to do it,” he said softly. “It didn’t feel like a choice because… to me, there wasn’t another option.” Peter looked up at him a little defiantly.

 

Steve felt an equal rush of affection and exasperation. He shook his head in disbelief. Where the hell had Tony _found_ this kid?

 

Suddenly, Peter raised a gloved hand to his face. “W-what happened to my mask?!” He scrambled suddenly to his feet, reeling from the enormity of what that meant. Every person here knew his face.

 

Tony moved forward. “Kid… sit down, okay? You’ve just been through a lot.”

 

Betty moved closer to Peter. “He’s right, you need to rest,” she said firmly.

 

Peter reluctantly sat back down. “I-I d-don’t mean to be rude, but who are you?”

 

“Betty Ross. I’m so sorry for the pain that my father has caused you.”

 

“Your _father_?”

 

Betty nodded grimly. “Your friends Natasha and Scott brought me here to keep me safe from…”

 

“Thanos,” supplied Natasha.

 

“Yes… there wasn’t much time for all the details but… it looks as if my father is being manipulated by this Thanos. I guess there was some sort of threat made against me…”

 

Peter opened his mouth with every intention of asking about a hundred questions.

 

“Nope,” said Tony, catching the look on Peter’s face.

 

Peter stared at Tony in disbelief. Was he really going to keep him in the dark? _Again?_

“No one is telling Peter anything,” said Tony firmly. “Until he gets some food. I know you guys have to have something around here…”

 

Peter smiled. The rest of the group began bustling around, scrounging up some food from the warehouse kitchen that was once reserved for its employees.

 

As the group began eating, Tony continued to cast anxious looks at Peter who, though perfectly lively, still looked pale.

 

Peter suddenly cleared his throat awkwardly, addressing the group. "Thanks for...for saving me,” he said fervently. “All of you.”

 

Tony rolled his eyes. "Kid, if I have to hear you _thank_ _us_ after trying to give yourself up for me and then taking a bullet for Cap I might be physically ill. Now, eat."

 

Peter grinned sheepishly, turning back to his food. Between mouthfuls, he turned to Wanda, who was sitting beside him. "By the way... your powers are like, the coolest thing _ever_. I seriously thought I was going to die when you threw that guy away from me like that!"

 

Wanda smiled. "That isn't how most people feel."

 

"How do most people feel?"

 

"Afraid."

 

Peter blinked.

 

Wanda continued. "Sometimes I'm even afraid of myself," she admitted. "I think the only person who wasn't at least a little frightened of me was my brother."

 

"Does he have powers too?"

 

"He did."

 

Peter paused. "I'm sorry." They were quiet for a moment. "I'm not afraid of you.”

 

"You've only seen a little of what I can do."

 

Peter frowned, but didn't press her further.

 

Tony finally allowed them to debrief Peter. The kid was an attentive and highly dramatic audience, exclaiming in disbelief throughout. 

 

"What does he look like?" Peter asked in an awed whisper.

 

"Sort of like an eggplant, honestly," said Scott. "The resemblance is--"

 

Sam cut him off abruptly. "We can show you." He looked over at Betty, who'd been listening with trepidation. "You, too."

 

Sam played the footage. Peter's eyes widened while Tony's narrowed. Betty looked deeply troubled. 

 

"What does he need Vision for?" Peter asked.

 

Wanda shook her head. "We don't know. This wasn't supposed to happen... we were supposed to be able to stop them from taking Vision but… we were held up by a group of the feds. By the time we got there, Vision was already gone.”

 

“We’ll get him back,” said Steve firmly, placing a comforting hand on Wanda’s shoulder.

 

Betty spoke up. “This happened because Thanos used me against my father,” she said. “Now you are in the perfect position to do the same thing.”

 

Natasha raised an eyebrow. “What are you suggesting?”

 

“I’m suggesting you call my father. Let him know that I’m here and safe. Offer to release me in exchange for Vision.”

 

***

As the agreed upon transfer of the android approached, Thanos grew greedy in anticipation of possessing the mind stone. The video communication between himself and Ross crackled to life.

 

“Do you have it?”

 

Ross looked terrible. A thin sheen of sweat covered his face and he looked like a man eviscerated. He cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Where is my daughter?”

 

“Safe.”

 

“Prove it. Show me.”

 

Thanos gave a lazy wave of his hand. The feed of Betty’s house appeared, earning a terrified groan from Ross.

 

“Bring out the girl,” Thanos instructed.

 

The agents he’d stationed around Betty’s house were humans he’d possessed control of since his return to Earth. He could have used some of the Chituari, but they drew too much attention. Humans were more simple-minded to be sure, but also much simpler to manipulate. The agent on the feed nodded.

 

Several terrible moments passed before Thanos realized that something was amiss. The beginnings of a terrible rage began to consume him.

 

“S-Sir…. “ the agent said tremulously.

 

Thanos didn’t need him to complete his sentence. Nor did Ross. The video feed disconnected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think/what suggestions you have! I love reading your comments!! :)


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers argue over Betty's proposed plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thank you so much everyone for taking the time to read/comment! :)

Ned watched the grainy video feed with mounting horror as his best friend collapsed. He was paralyzed with fear as Peter was carried off, clearly unconscious, by Tony Stark. Shaking, he reached for his phone, dropping it twice before he finally compelled his trembling fingers to dial Happy.  


“Yeah?”

“Mr. H-Happy sir… it’s Ned… P-Peter’s friend—“

“Look, kid. We have a serious situation right now and I can’t talk, okay?”

“No wait! L-listen! Peter’s hurt and so is Vision…”

Happy stopped telling Ned off and started peppering him with questions. “What the hell are you talking about? How do you know?”

Ned shared a jumbled and emotional account of what he’d seen on the satellite footage. He realized vaguely that he was crying.

Happy was silent. When he finally responded, the note of fear in his voice did nothing to soothe Ned’s frayed nerves.

“Shit. Don’t do anything, okay? I’m handling it.”

“B-but…”

Happy disconnected the call. Ned cursed. For all he knew, he’d just seen Peter _die_ , and all Happy had done was tell him to _not do anything._

Then, the only thing that could make the situation worse for Ned happened. May’s number appeared on his cell phone. Ned gulped, intending to ignore the call, but couldn’t find it in him. He answered on the third ring.

 

“Ned, what’s going on? You and Peter were supposed to be back hours ago!”

Ned tried to collect himself and failed utterly. “M-May…” he sobbed.

May’s response was panicky. “What?! What’s going on, Ned?”

 

***

Everyone was silent as Betty’s proposal hung in the air.

 

“No,” said Steve firmly.

 

Betty opened her mouth to argue but Steve continued. “We aren’t going to threaten Ross with your safety. That makes us no better than Thanos. It isn’t who we are.”

 

“Once I’m back with my father, I can explain,” said Betty. “But right now, you need Vision back quickly before Thanos gets to him.”

 

Tony spoke up. “Maybe we should think about it, Cap. I don’t like it either, but…It’s not as if we’re actually going to hurt her.”

 

Peter got to his feet shakily. Tony and Steve both moved towards him in alarm.

 

“Sit down, kid,” said Tony sharply.

Peter shook his head. “I’m okay.”

 

“You’re _not_ okay. Sit down,” said Steve.

 

“What if we traded me in for Vision?” asked Peter quietly. “I’m wanted anyway.”

 

“So help me God, kid, I will knock you back out if you don’t sit down. _Now._ ” Tony snarled.

 

Peter flinched, but did as he was told. Cap looked stunned at the kid’s clearly serious suggestion to trade himself in for Vision and raised an eyebrow at Tony, who merely shook his head in utter exasperation.

 

“Okay,” said Tony flatly. “Now that we’ve clearly established that we won’t be entertaining _that_ idea, I think we need to revisit Betty’s.”

 

Steve shook his head again.

 

“What if we let Betty go back to her dad and she negotiates for us to get Vision back?” Peter asked.

 

“That won’t work,” said Betty bluntly. “I’ve never been able to reason with my father. Threats are the only thing he understands.”

 

Peter and Steve opened their mouths simultaneously to argue with Betty before Sam interjected. “I swear, if I have to hear another rant from junior and senior boy scout here, I’m gonna be sick. We’re going with Betty’s plan, period.”

 

“I don’t know,” said Clint uncomfortably.  

 

“We’re running out of time,” said Natasha impatiently. “We need to take her up on this before it’s too late.”

 

“Why isn’t anyone asking me what _I_ think?” asked Scott in a mock hurt voice.

 

“We need to get Vis back no matter what,” snapped Wanda.

 

As their argument escalated, Betty slipped away. Scouring the table, her eyes fell upon the phone that Cap had set up with the one he’d sent Tony. With shaking hands, she dialed the only number that she still, after all these years, knew by heart.

 

***

May accepted Ned’s story with steely eyes, grabbing the keys to her car before he finished talking. Ned expected her to take off immediately, but she leaned across to push open the passenger door. “Get in,” she said shortly.

 

***

After killing those involved with allowing Betty’s escape, Thanos prepared to make good on his threat to Ross. He would destroy New York, beginning with the Avenger’s headquarters.

 

He’d hoped that it wouldn’t come to this, that he would be able to secure the mind stone from the android and move on to the others without drawing attention to himself… but no matter. The Avengers had proven themselves continued nuisances, and he was tired of attempting to proceed with his mission undetected. Subtlety wasn’t in his nature. What did it matter if he had to expend the remnants of his Chitauri army to secure the mind stone? Once he was in possession of it, the Avengers would be even more helpless than they were at present.

 

***

Steve was abashed when he noticed that he’d lost sight of Betty. As everyone continued to argue, he scanned the room for her. With a thrill of foreboding he noticed that she was speaking into his phone. “Hey! Stop!”

 

Peter was closer. He turned to see Betty speaking into the phone, alarmed that he’d failed to notice. Even with enhanced senses, everyone else being so loud had drowned out her whispers. He had no doubts about who she’d called. He reached for the phone, but Betty was already ending the call.

 

Betty cleared her throat. “My father will be arriving at a location that I will direct you to in order to exchange Vision for my safe return.”

 

Cap looked momentarily furious, then sighed in resignation. “Everyone get in the van. Now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please consider commenting with feedback/thoughts ! :)


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The exchange of Betty for Vision takes place with an unforeseen complication.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, please enjoy! :)

"What part of _don't do anything_ was unclear to you?" Happy asked sardonically, opening the door to reveal a harassed looking Ned.

 

May pushed Ned aside, facing Happy with a remarkable amount of vitriol. "Where the _hell_ is Peter?"

 

Happy glared at Ned over May's shoulder. "You called his aunt? Really?"

 

Ignoring Happy, May strode into the lobby of the Avengers headquarters. Happy's gaze shifted then from Ned to something behind him. His eyes widened and he reached out to pull Ned into the building with him and May.

 

"What was _that_ about?" asked Ned, pulling his arm back from Happy's vice grip in alarm.

 

Happy mouthed wordlessly, slamming the door behind Ned but continuing to stare out the window. A strange and terrible creature, the likes of which hadn't been seen on Earth since Loki’s invasion of Earth, loomed in the distance. Happy could faintly make out two more just behind it. "F.R.I.D.A.Y.," he wheezed. "Initiate lockdown!"

 

***

 

Tony half-wished he'd asked Peter to stay behind at the warehouse while the exchange happened, but he'd learned the hard way that when he said "stay here" Peter heard the opposite.

 

They sat in the parking lot of a dilapidated gas station waiting for Ross to arrive with Vision. Tony noticed that Steve was still gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles had gone white. The rest of the group was silent, crowded together in the back of the van with Betty.

 

Finally, an armored van arrived containing Ross and what looked like three of his agents. Ross exited the car, brandishing one of the strange weapons that had taken down Peter and Vision.

 

Tony looked at Steve. “We _have_ to pull this off. If Ross thinks that we’re bluffing…”

 

Steve just nodded. “I know.”

 

Tony turned to the others. “Stay here.”

 

Tony exited the van and heard the driver’s side door open and shut as Steve got out behind him. The two men made their way to where Ross was standing.

 

Ross had dark circles beneath his eyes and the hand holding his weapon was shaking. “What have you done with her?” he asked hollowly.

 

Steve grimaced at that, but his expression hardened. "Nothing…yet."

 

Ross flushed with anger. Tony looked aside at Cap, mildly impressed that he was able to set aside the good guy routine.

 

"I'll bring the android to a central point between our two vans. I know you've brought the Spider Man with you. Send Betty out with him. No one else.” Ross clearly saw the surprise in their expressions. “I know that either of you would risk your own skins to try and cross me on this… but I’m betting that Stark won’t risk the kid’s.”

 

Tony opened his mouth to argue but Steve put a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Fine," said Steve. Ross nodded, gesturing to his men in the van.

 

Steve and Tony walked back to the others.

 

" _No_ ," hissed Tony.

 

"I didn't want to do this at all, Tony. You know that. But now we have no choice. If Ross thinks we're bluffing we'll lose Vision. We're running out of time. If Thanos catches wind of this…"

 

Tony steeled himself and opened the van, beckoning to Betty. He hesitated, then said "Peter, you too."

 

Peter exited the van, pulling on his mask and looking bewildered.

 

"There's been a complication," said Steve, addressing Peter and Betty. "Ross is insisting that Peter facilitate the exchange."

 

Peter's eyes widened. "Why?"

 

"Insurance," Tony spat. He shook his head, trying to mask his disquiet for the kid's sake. "It'll be fine. We'll be right here."

 

Peter looked from Steve to Tony. "Wh-what do you need me to do?"

 

"Just bring her to the halfway point between the vans. Ross will hand over Vision and you'll hand over Betty," said Tony.

 

Steve pulled Peter aside, putting his hands on his shoulders. "You're really going to have to make him buy it, Peter,” said Steve. "Ross has to believe Betty is in real danger or we might lose Vision... and you, too."

 

Peter swallowed. "Okay," he said hesitantly. He turned to Betty, gesturing politely for her to walk in front of him.

 

Tony shook his head in agitation. "That's exactly the kind of shit that's gonna get our bluff called, Peter."

 

"You'll have to be holding on to her," said Steve patiently. "And make sure she stands in front of you... Ross has one of those guns." He paused. 'It would probably help if she appeared to be struggling some, too."

 

Peter looked incredibly uncomfortable. He turned to Betty, uncertain.

 

"It's okay, Peter," she said, positioning herself in front of him. Peter resigned himself, hesitantly grabbing Betty's arms.

 

"Sell it," said Tony firmly.

 

Peter gritted his teeth, gripping Betty's arms tighter. She flinched a little. Peter hated himself. He hadn't wanted to do this. His stomach rolled with nausea.

 

Tony nodded. "It's time."

 

Peter couldn't remember ever feeling so tense in his life. He pushed Betty out in front of him, trying to appear forceful without actually being so. She started to struggle against him. Peter could tell that she wasn't putting any real effort into the struggle but realized with a pang that it would make no difference at all if she was.

 

Peter watched with bated breath as Ross's agents carried the still paralyzed Vision out of the armored van. Even from a distance, Peter could see the color drain from Ross’s face at the sight of him with Betty.

 

Peter and Ross at last reached each other. Peter’s heart was hammering loudly. Betty gave a particularly vicious pull then, and Peter nearly lost his grip on her in his surprise. He yanked her back towards him a little harder than he meant and she cried out. Forcing himself not to release her and apologize profusely, he looked up at Ross defiantly. Peter expected to see that defiance mirrored in Ross’s eyes but found nothing but fear. “Don’t hurt her!”

 

“Give us Vision,” Peter demanded, just managing to keep a tremor out of his voice.

 

Ross nodded curtly, the signal for Tony and Steve to join Peter and accept Vision from the agents.

 

All of them stood there, no one wanting to make the first move. Tony glared at Ross. “He’s still paralyzed.”

 

“Yes. We couldn’t contain him otherwise.”

 

“Undo it.”

 

Ross nodded again. One of the agents raised his weapon.

 

The sight of the weapon pointed in their general direction caused Peter to react without thinking. In a split second, Peter had pulled Betty behind him, shielding her from the line of fire.

 

Silence fell. Ross’s eyes widened.

 

Tony braced himself for Ross’s agent to open fire, but instead Ross cleared his throat loudly. “These weapons have a second setting to reverse the effects of the first. It requires direct contact with the body.”

 

At those words, Ross’s agent turned his gun toward Vision, pressing it to the android’s neck and pulling the trigger. At first it seemed that nothing had happened, but slowly Vision came to himself.

 

Gliding gracefully upright, Vision turned to face Ross and the others. Peter looked to Tony and Steve, who both nodded. Peter released Betty’s arms and she ran to her father.

 

The tense atmosphere broken, both groups hurried back to their respective vehicles. The rest of the Avengers had piled out of the van, watching anxiously from just behind it. Tony heard the squeal of tires as Ross’s armored van departed.

 

“Vis!” cried Wanda, launching herself forward into Vision’s arms.

 

Vision returned the hug, holding Wanda close. The rest of the team cried out in celebration, rushing forward to join the hug or clap Vision on the back. Steve and Tony grinned at each other.

 

Vision extricated himself from the group and approached Peter. “Thank you,” he said simply. “I know that was against your nature.”

 

Peter nodded sheepishly. “N-no problem.”

 

“Vision, do you know why Ross ordered your capture?” asked Steve.

 

“No. I believe Ross’s agents assumed I could not hear them in that paralyzed state so they spoke freely around me … but even they did not know what Ross wanted with me.”

 

Tony opened his mouth to tell Vision about Thanos when he received an alert from his phone. It was from F.R.I.D.A.Y. and informed him that headquarters had been placed in lockdown. Tony’s mouth went dry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment to let me know what you think/what your suggestions are! They are super helpful to me as I write more! :)


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone still reading... here is the final chapter! Sorry for the LONG delay... some things came up in my personal life. Hope you enjoy! :)

 

Tony used his phone to contact F.R.I.D.A.Y. “Who initiated the lockdown?”

 

The team was staring at him now, their celebration of Vision’s return halted.

 

“Happy,” F.R.I.D.A.Y. answered. “My sensors indicate that there is a group of Chitauri outside the compound attempting to gain entry.”

 

Tony froze. “ _Chitauri?_ That’s impossible…Where’s Happy?”

 

The team exchanged anxious looks. Wanda put her hands over her mouth.

 

“The Chitauri weapons are doing structural damage to the main entrance of the compound. Happy took May Parker and Ned Leeds to the secure room in your penthouse.”

 

“What?!”

 

“Ned Leeds and May Parker arrived shortly before the Chitauri.”

 

“Jesus… okay, we’re on our way.”

 

Tony ended the call, rubbing a hand over his face in disbelief.

 

“What’s happening, Tony?” asked Steve.

 

“That was F.R.I.D.A.Y…. there’s been a breach at the compound. Happy locked it down.” Tony looked at Peter, who was surveying him anxiously. He sighed. “Happy isn’t the only one there.”

 

“Who else would be there?” asked Wanda in confusion. “Is it Rhodey?”

 

Tony shook his head and looked at Peter, steeling himself. “Peter’s aunt and friend. They were looking for Peter.”

 

Peter’s eyes grew wide. “What?! No…. they… wouldn’t be there? They—“ Peter realized with a horrible jolt that he’d never called Ned to tell him that he was okay. Ned must have seen him taken down through the hacked security feed…Peter put his face in his hands, breathing hard. “We have to get there. _Now_.”

 

The group got back into the van, heading back to the compound. Peter had considered taking off on his own but knew that the van would be faster, especially once they got upstate and had fewer options for web swinging. He was shaking. If something happened to them, it would be all his fault…

 

Steve parked the van at a distance from the compound. “We need a couple of people to survey the situation and figure out how many Chitauri we’re dealing with.”

 

“I’m going,” said Peter dangerously. No one argued with him.

 

“Cap and I will take Peter,” said Tony. “Stay here. Do not engage unless forced to.”

 

The team nodded.

 

Peter struggled to maintain control of himself as he, Tony, and Steve took in the mangled entrance to the compound. The Chitauri technology had melted through the reinforced steel. The three of them crossed through into the compound, alert and tense.

 

"Where's the safe room?" Peter murmured to Tony.

 

Tony jerked his head toward the staircase. They'd begun their ascent when the sound of screaming stopped them cold. Peter easily recognized the screams as May’s and, abandoning all caution, he started to take the remainder of the stairs at a run.

 

"Peter, wait!" hissed Steve. Peter ignored him.

 

May's screams continued and Peter felt bile rising in his throat. Never before could he remember moving so fast, but as much good as it was doing him he felt that he was moving backwards.

 

At last, Peter arrived at the ruined entrance to the safe room. The chaos beyond the door was difficult to make sense of as Peter surveyed the tangle of human and Chitauri figures. He registered that they seemed to have just breached the room, and his eyes fell on the clear cause of May's screaming. Ned lay motionless on the floor, his arm clearly broken and stuck out at a sickening angle. Blood flowed freely from his nose, and one Chitauri had a foot on Ned's back to prevent him from getting up. This precaution was clearly unnecessary, since Ned was out cold. Happy gawked at Ned, restrained by three Chitauri as he struggled fruitlessly, whimpering. May was kicking and clawing, trying to reach Ned, still screaming.

 

Without warning, the Chitauri nearest May threw a vicious punch, sinking an armored fist into May's stomach. She doubled over, crying out in pain. Peter felt pure unchecked rage devour him. He hurled himself without a thought into the fray, lashing out at the Chitauri who'd hit May with all of his considerable strength. The surprised Chitauri turned, throwing blows that Peter ducked with help from his spider sense.

 

Dimly, Peter realized that the Chitauri hadn’t made a move to use their high grade weapons beyond gaining access to the compound. They could have easily killed May, Ned, and Happy, but Thanos appeared to have reasons for wanting them alive... but why? Before Peter could entertain the notion further, the Chitauri he was fighting hit him squarely in the throat with the barrel of his weapon. Peter reeled back, wheezing, and was forced to recalibrate before staggering forward again.

 

Peter was only mildly aware of Tony and Steve joining the fight. After he'd knocked the Chitauri that had hit May out, he moved towards his aunt. She was gasping for breath, still doubled over in pain.

 

As Peter attended to May, Tony and Steve took out the remaining Chitauri who were still strangely hesitant to use their weapons. Steve knelt by the unconscious Ned and began trying to revive him. He was quickly joined in his efforts by Peter (supporting May) and Happy, but in the end Steve had to carry him from the room. Peter kept his arm around May and suspected from how heavily she was leaning on him that she was in even more pain than she was letting on.

 

A loud clamor from below made them stop dead.

 

"Tony!?"

 

Tony recognized Wanda's voice and sighed heavily in relief. They made their way slowly down the stairs where the rest of the team had gathered. Only when they reached the landing did Tony notice how grim and set their faces were.

 

"What is it?" Steve asked, still holding Ned.

 

"They are coming," said Vision darkly.

 

The rest of the group exchanged meaningful looks. Tony's heart sank. He looked to Peter, who kept throwing anxious glances at Ned while softly murmuring reassurances to May, who seemed barely able to keep her feet.

 

"Hap," said Tony slowly. "There's still a car around back. Take Ned and May to a hospital while there's still time. We'll deal with this."

 

Happy nodded, visibly gathering his resolve. He beckoned to Peter and Steve to follow him with May and Ned.

 

Peter noticed with a jolt that May was shaking badly and was no longer supporting any of her own weight. He picked her up, trying his best not to jostle her.

 

Finally, they arrived at the car. Steve gently placed Ned in the backseat of the car and assured Peter when he asked that Ned was still breathing. Satisfied, Peter moved to the passenger side with May and deposited her gently in the seat.

 

May reached out to grab Peter's arm with surprising strength. "Peter..."

 

"Shh, May, it's alright," said Peter. "Happy's going to get you out of here."

 

"Promise me... that you'll come home," said May faintly.

 

Peter leaned forward, pressing his forehead to May's. "I promise," he said solemnly. He carefully hugged her, then shut the car door with a grateful wave to Happy.

 

As the car drove away, Peter stood watching it go as if paralyzed. Steve approached him cautiously, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Peter," he said softly. Peter shook his head as if to clear it, then nodded to Steve. Together, they returned to the rest of the team.

 

"They're moving in on the compound," said Tony brusquely. "If we want Hap to make it out unchallenged it'd be best for us to show our faces, draw them towards the front entrance."

 

The team nodded, preparing. They all knew what Tony hadn't said--that trying to reinforce the compound was useless.

 

As the team exited the compound, they could just make out the appearance of countless Chitauri figures, wielding their usual weapons. The team slid into fighting stances, some of them preparing weapons and others fists. Vision looked gravely out at the approaching army, and was the first to see him. Thanos himself had come.

 

Sharp intakes of breath came from the rest of the team as they spotted what Vision had. Thanos was walking calmly towards the compound, arms outstretched as if in greeting. The team froze.

 

Peter felt his heart hammering in his chest as Thanos approached. Peter noticed a strange armored glove on his hand and felt an inexplicable thrill of foreboding at the sight. 

 

"I believe that this is the first meeting for many of us," Thanos boomed, inclining his head. "I want to offer my praise. You have assembled quite a powerful group."

 

No one moved. Peter looked at Tony and immediately wished he hadn't. Never before had he seen the man looking so unguardedly stricken.

 

"I do not wish to see such rare abilities wasted," Thanos continued. "In the universe I envision, there is ample room for those of power to share in my rule."

 

_That’s why the Chitauri weren’t using lethal force._ Peter gaped at Thanos in disbelief. Did he actually believe that they would _join_ him?

 

Thanos looked around at the group, saying their names one by one, looking each in the eye as if assessing them. "Iron-Man. Captain America. Scarlett Witch. Black Widow. Vision."

 

"And Ant-Man," muttered Scott. Steve elbowed him.

 

When Thanos arrived at Peter, he paused, his eyes glinting malevolently. "But who is this?"

 

Peter swallowed hard, gathering his nerve. He kept his gaze level, his head up, and Tony was impressed by how steady his voice was as he answered. "Spider-Man."

 

Thanos emitted a booming laugh. "But you're a child! Is Tony Stark recruiting children? Perhaps he realizes how desperate the state of this planet is after all?"

 

Peter wasn't cowed. "What do you want?" he spat.

 

Thanos raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought that was obvious by now. I have business with the android." Thanos made a subtle move towards Vision and Peter reacted immediately, placing himself between Thanos and Vision.

 

"You'll have to go through me," said Peter fiercely.

 

Thanos laughed again. "Stand in my way, and I will bathe this compound in the blood of the Avengers. Hand over the android and you will share in my rule of the universe."

 

At this, Wanda moved forward as well, standing beside Peter and grasping his hand. She stared at Thanos, eyes blazing. One by one, the remainder of the team gathered around Vision, crouched in fighting positions.

 

Thanos sighed as if he'd suffered a very minor disappointment. "Very well," he said, shrugging. He gestured to the Chitauri army, which began to move forward.

 

At once, a glowing golden portal appeared in the street between Thanos and the Avengers. The advancing Chitauri stopped in their tracks, and for a moment no one moved as figures began to emerge one by one.

 

Tony gaped, unable to believe what he was seeing. First emerged a man in a cloak who seemed to be _flying._ Then came Thor, Loki, and Bruce Banner, all looking slightly disheveled.

 

The sight of Loki seemed to enrage Thanos. "YOU!" he roared. "HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOUR FACE ON THIS PLANET AGAIN?!"

 

Loki winced, looking to Thor.

 

Dr. Strange floated forward, joining the Avengers where they stood between Vision and Thanos's army. "You won't be taking the android anywhere," he said simply. He smirked, gesturing to Thanos's gauntlet. "Looking a bit empty, isn't it?"

 

A murderous look crossed Thanos's face. Thor and Bruce joined the Avengers, sliding into battle stances beside them. Looking reluctant, Loki too stood between Vision and Thanos.

 

The war for Earth had begun and, win or lose, the Avengers would fight for their planet together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would love to hear your thoughts, consider leaving a comment ! :)


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